Yellowjacket
by Lord Candycane
Summary: She didn't remember who she was, or what she was named, or what had been her purpose in life. All she knew was that who she was, was in the past, and that she is now what she is. They called her Yellowjacket. But when she meets two important figures from her past, they may be the key to her rediscovering who she was.
1. Yellowjacket

**_Hello, nice to see everyone again. I did say that Kids World wouldn't be my Inside Out story._**

 ** _Now, just so you know, the emotions WILL appear in this story. It actually has to do with the plot that they're here, so, yeah, they're appearing. Riley's still the main focus, but I kind of require the emotions to appear to move the story along. They're a plot-point, you see, so yes, the emotions will physically appear._**

 ** _But I'm getting ahead of myself. Let's move onto the story itself._**

* * *

 _ **Yellowjacket**_

* * *

I sat on my bed, facing the window. It was immensely boring, but I didn't know what else to do at the moment. I mean, soon _they_ would be here, but at the moment, it was just me.

To pass the time, I chewed on my fingers. It hurt, but I didn't know what else to do. This was just one of of my many ways to pass the time. But, I had to wonder: was this all there was to it?

I wasn't always like this, but I don't remember who I am. I have trouble remembering much of anything, to be honest.

I mean, my mind has been so... empty, since... I lost track of when it started. I know that I wasn't always like the way I was now, but I just can't remember. I don't know who I am, or who I used to be.

There are times where I try to remember my name. However, all I remember was that it started with an R.

Ryan, maybe? Or, Rosy? Everyday, I think I'll remember who I was, but then I'm faced with the true reality that it's hopeless. Who I was is gone, and I am now who I am.

Yellowjacket. That was my new name. That was what they all called me now.

The others. They were like me. They were empty, having forgotten about who they were, and what they are. Sometimes, I wonder if they think like I do, wishing to return to the past to when our life was hopeful.

By now, the city was littered with us. I don't know why it felt so empty, though. Barely anyone is truly missing, but whenever I pass through the streets, I feel like I've lost something.

There is something I remember about my past...

There were too people. They've been with me since I was born, but I have only the vaguest memory of them. I remember that they disappeared some time ago, and I haven't seen them since.

Everyday, I wonder if they will come back. If they will open the door that's lying right next to me, come inside, and then I will remember who I am. But I lost that hope weeks ago.

I'm alone now, for the most part. The others only come for me when I'm of use to them. When they arrive, they use me to help them hunt down the "freaks", among other things. When I'm no longer of any use at the moment, they leave me here.

I curled up on the bed, waiting for when the others would inevitably showed up to do the usual with me. Until then, I can only wonder if this is all that awaits me in the future.

* * *

Everything was pitch black in Yellowjacket's Mind. All of the Memory Islands had been shut down, and had collapsed inside the Memory Dump, which was filled with forgotten memories.

In Long-Term Memory, the formerly glowing corridors below the Headquarters, was damp, filled with graying memory orbs. Occasionally, a light would flicker in one of the more important memories, but that's all it was. A flicker. No more.

In Headquarters, the room had been shut out of commission. In contrast to every other location in the mind, there was a small, light, though dim.

Star dragged through the darkened Headquarters, her glow omitting the room to allow everyone else to see. Her glow used to be brighter, but it was a comfort to the others, who could hardly see anything else without her.

Teardrop stood at the controls, which had began to short circuit out since Yellowjacket's memories had started failing like the others. Nowadays, she was usually the one running the controls, making Yellowjacket contemplate her life now that she was on her own. Other than that, she didn't know what to do.

"How long has it been?" Star asked Nerve, the one who spent his time configuring out the events that would partake in Yellowjacket's life.

"It was Day... 345," Nerve replied after a moment's pause. It was essential that he remembered what would happen, for Yellowjacket's sake.

Star shivered. It had nearly been a year since they had undergone the sudden transformation. They had still seen no sign of those two people that they felt were so important to their past.

Brick spent all his time pacing around the room. In spite of their limited thought process, they had managed to configure his place in things. When the others would arrive, that was when Brick would drive. The others needed that for Yellowjacket to carry out their hunts.

Star had stared at Pixie. Ever since they had lost contact with their memories, Pixie had been the one who was left out of things. Funnily enough, Star, though she hardly remembered anything anymore, could remember that some time ago, Teardrop had been in the exact same situation.

They had tried to keep some semblance of order. Star was the one who kept the others motivated and hopeful, Teardrop was the one who tried to inspire help from the others, Brick would induce rage in Yellowjacket to defend herself if she was in danger, which was constant, and Nerve kept Yellowjacket in constant fear of those who sought to harm her. But, they had no use for Pixie anymore. It had been like that for nearly a year.

Star did sometimes wonder if, one day, things would return to normal, and what had happened now would be a memory that they could dispose of in the Memory Dump.

But the longer Yellowjacket remained like this, the more Star knew it would be unlikely Yellowjacket ever escaped from the tormented shell she was in now.

* * *

Yellowjacket heard a scratching coming from outside the door. She had grown accustomed to the scratching, and she understood its meaning.

The others were here. It was time.

* * *

 _Alright, can you guess what has happened to "Yellowjacket" and the others? I don't think its very hard to figure out._

 _If the story seems slow, don't worry, they pick up quickly. Anyways, read and review, as always._


	2. The Others

_**Well, it appears nobody has figured out Riley's condition yet (except for the people I told through PMs). Also, as for the Disgust thing: I KNOW she's modeled after a broccoli, but when I wrote it as a name, it didn't feel quite like the others. The thing was, it wasn't quite as subtle a name as the other emotions. With the others, you can see the thing they're based on in the design (you can see a brick in Anger, for example, and a star in Joy), but Disgust's model isn't quite like that. Aside from being green, she barely resembles a broccoli. She could resemble a whole different number of green things, like a blade of grass or a leaf. So, when thinking of a new name, I came up with Pixie (I'm a fan of fae creatures), and I felt it worked better as a name.**_

 _ **No responses, yet. Next chapter, certainly.**_

* * *

Yellowjacket didn't want to stand to make the others wait now that they had arrived to call her. They were the closest thing to a meaning she had to life; they were her friends, and she didn't want to disappoint them.

Scraping towards the door - Yellowjacket found it harder to walk right nowadays - she rested a wobbly hand on the doorknob, and turned it open. Once the door was open, she was faced with three familiar people.

The first one was Sawbones, the leader. He was a rusty looking man, with dust on his face and head, and white hair and a rugged short beard. His eyes looked worn out, but she could tell his gaze was sharp. Yellowjacket never did know his age, but she could tell he was old; older than those two people she had seen when she was born. Another thing that made him stand out was that he always held butcher knives in his hands, no matter the situation. His body was covered in scars, letting Yellowjacket know he had seen many tough times in his long life.

The next was Ghoul. She was rather young, probably less than half Sawbone's age. Her skin was painted gray to resemble the undead, which only stood out against her pitch black hair that was blacker than night. Her clothing was always in tatters, which Yellowjacket assumed stemmed from a fit of pique induced from her transformation.

The third, which Yellowjacket hardly paid any attention to you, was Noose, who, oddly enough, didn't wear an actual noose. He was simply a balding, middle-aged man who looked out-of-shape and wore standard businessman clothing. He could've passed off as a normal guy, if it weren't for the fact that his skin was white as chalk. Yellowjacket didn't acknowledge him much compared to the others, but deep down, she felt safest when she was with him.

Yellowjacket stood uncomfortably facing the three. She knew that they had took her in, to an extent, but she still didn't have a true close bond with any of them.

Ghoul stuck an arm out to grab hold of Yellowjacket's cheek. She was the most prone to embracing Yellowjacket, among other things. The younger girl thought it was supposed to be comforting, even if her thoughts betrayed that feeling.

"Yellow...jacket..." Ghoul whispered out to her. The three began to lead Riley through the hallways and down the stairs. They kept passing by portraits of Yellowjacket and those two people she used to know. Yellowjacket continued to stare at the portraits, hoping to jog her memory. However, with all the times she'd passed by the portraits, she knew how futile it was.

As the others urged her out of the house, she knew fully well what they wanted.

They wanted her to aid them in hunting down the Freaks.

Yellowjacket wasn't quite sure why everybody always wanted to hunt down Freaks. She felt that maybe it was because they were afraid of them, as many were scared of things that were different. They didn't kill them, just convert them to be like them, though that was what Yellowjacket believed to be true.

Yellowjacket herself was somewhat scared of the Freaks. In the nearly a year she had been like this, she had seen a lot of people get killed by the Freaks. She somewhat agreed with the others when they hunted them down. Maybe they were just trying to keep things safe in the city.

She was cut out from her thoughts when Noose suddenly picked her up, slung her over his shoulder, and the three carried her off down the streets to carry out their plans.

* * *

An hour later, Yellowjacket found herself crouched over on the sidewalk, staring down at a puddle on the pavement. It was about then that she was confronted with her new appearance.

Her skin had turned gray, and her formerly bright blue eyes had turned cold as snow. Blue streaks were lined in her skin, and her veins were showing. Her hair had turned white, and her nails had grown longer to resemble claws.

Yellowjacket despised how she looked, which is why she had smashed all the reflective surfaces in her house. Now, however, she was forced to confront her appearance for the time being.

Yellowjacket started to sob loudly. For quite some time, she carried on like this, hoping that somebody would notice. She briefly looked up and turned to stare at the trio hiding in the woods. They silently urged her to continue. With a sigh, Yellowjacket continued to cry.

She wasn't actually sad; at least, not as much as she was letting on. It was just part of Sawbone's plan to draw out more Freaks.

Surely enough, they came. A group of them, appearing well-hidden in a nearby building, soon began to shuffle out of their hiding spot, drawn by the sobbing Yellowjacket was emitting.

Yellowjacket instinctively covered her face so they wouldn't see her unusual features as they approached. She started to cry louder in order to draw them closer.

"Hey, girl?" One of them asked. "Are you alright?"

Yellowjacket secretly marveled at the stupidity of the Freaks. With all the times she had pulled off this gambit, she would've thought the Freaks would have gotten used to it. Nevertheless, to be more convincing, she began to slow her crying to a stop. In the bushes, the others hid under it, ready to ambush the Freaks.

"Hey, this is no time for you to be out here, alone," One of the Freaks pointed out, now just above Yellowjacket.

Yellowjacket stopped crying. She drew in her breath, ready to let loose.

Then, before any of the Freaks could do anything, Yellowjacket let out a scream.

* * *

 _ **Has anyone figured out what has happened yet? If not, it gets explained next chapter. Anyways, read and review as always.  
**_


	3. The Freaks

_So, most people have figured out half of what's going on. Anyways, I said I'd do replies, so I'm doing them._

 _Miss Storyholic: I'm not even going to bother being cryptic: yes, you're right._

 _Satsui no Hadu Ryu: Thanks. You deserve this._

 _The 379th Hero: Neither._

 _Korrasami 88: You find out both in this chapter._

 _Antha1: No, no, and no._

 _Drunken Hamster: It was inspired by that film, so there you go._

 _Js: See the above reply._

 _ErinMilne: Okay, secrets are revealed in this chapter._

 _I am a burglar: What would you have to steal from her? Besides, you don't have a gun._

 _PotterPhantomKitten: Yeah, you're right._

 _The Batista: Eh, did the categories say this was supposed to be humorous? I plan to insert some humor, though._

 _Warning, though: this chapter will give you an insight on the violence that will ensue._

* * *

Yellowjacket let out a shrill, ear-piercing scream that carried off throughout the city. As she did so, she released her hands from her face to better project her calls, giving the Freaks a good look at her in the process.

"She's a screamer!" One of the Freaks shouted. Before they could react, Sawbones dove out of the bushes towards one of them. It appeared that these particular Freaks weren't accustomed to things like 'how to fight a swarm', because the Freak was instantly taken down by Sawbones in seconds. He scratched his face and body repeatedly. Ghoul and Noose took the opportunity to run out of their hiding spot.

The Freaks, who Yellowjacket realized were young and inexperienced, started panicking and running, despite the fact that they had guns. Yellowjacket wasn't quite sure how to use a gun, but she was sure if she was in their situation, she would have used it instantly.

The Freaks were running back to the building, with Sawbones, Ghoul and Noose chasing them, but Yellowjacket's scream had drawn in more attention. Hundreds of people began to charge across the city towards where the screaming had been located.

Finally, the Freaks started to use their guns. Yellowjacket saw a few people go down under the bullets, and for a second, she was worried that they all might die. However, realism kicked in and the hundreds upon hundreds of mobs forming in the city was way too much for the Freaks to handle, even with their firearms. They were swarmed and taken down in seconds, their screams carrying out into the night.

Yellowjacket watched from afar. She rarely partook in the violence; she was a kid, and the kids were supposed to call out for the adults in case Freaks appeared. However, she noticed one Freak manage to squeeze out of the crowd, his arm mangled, and start to run towards a wheeled vehicle. Curious, she followed him closely behind.

The young man dove into the car. He cried out in agony, dowsing his arm with whiskey to dull the pain. In spite of the pain, he managed to start the car. A few people charged at the car, beating on it, but the man rammed into them, knocking them to the side.

The man began to pull up down the streets, feeling a bit of relief at his lucky getaway. However, his relief was broken by the sounds of low growling in the backseat of the car. He looked up at the rear-view mirror, and saw a young girl in the backseat, next to an open window of the door.

Yellowjacket.

"Fu-"

Yellowjacket pounced before he could say anything.

* * *

Nerve squeaked and hid behind Star as they watched Brick take the controls of what remained of the control panel.

"This is wrong, so very, very wrong!" Nerve muttered as he lay in a fetal position behind Star, who herself was shuddering in discomfort.

Pixie groaned. "Ew, that's blood!" She shouted out. "That's blood! I think I'm... gonna..." She suddenly hurled on the ground, and ran off to find a private area to be alone.

"Brick, could you stop!" Nerve asked, daring to peak out from behind Star for a second, but recoiled when Brick stopped to glare at him.

"Let me work!" He shouted, aggravated, and turned back to the controls. Nerve's eyes rolled into the back of his head, and he fainted. Teardrop inched close to him, and shushed him, cradling him in her arms.

"Star, how long is this going to keep up?" Teardrop asked, looking up to the glowing emotion. Star shrugged, and turned back to Brick.

"Only time will tell," Was all she said. She was snapped out of her thoughts when Brick shouted, "Yes! I dislocated his arm!"

* * *

An hour later, Yellowjacket awoke, still in the back of the car. Her face was messy from what she had done an hour ago, and she wiped some plasma off her mouth with her yellow sleeve.

She looked at the front-seat, and saw the Freak lying, head hung, in the seat of the car. He was breathing, but Yellowjacket noticed it was starting to sound ragged and wheezy. She saw that his skin had paled, bordering on gray, and blue linings were beginning to appear on his neck.

"Freak... is no longer a freak," Yellowjacket proclaimed, then slumped back down in the backseat, worn out. Slowly, she grabbed the handle of the door and pushed it open, and weakly shuffled out of the car.

She was met with several other people, walking absentmindedly on the streets and sidewalks. They passed her by, barely acknowledging her presence.

Yellowjacket shrunk down a bit, then began to walk across the streets herself. She was about to go home, but then realized she had temporarily forgotten where her house was. It often happened, though, and she always remembered eventually.

With a sigh, Yellowjacket began to follow suit with the others; wandering the streets while awaiting her memory to be jogged.

* * *

In another section of the city, about a dozen Freaks sat in a room in an abandoned apartment building. Outside of the room, dozens of corpses lay lined out on the hallways.

A rather old man stood at the windows, watching as dozens of people wandered aimlessly through the streets. He sighed, then turned back to the rest of the Freaks. Several of them were tired and injured, most of the injured ones being children.

One woman walked up to him, saying, "Sir, my daughter's coming down with some illness," She said. "I don't know what to do."

"And those last few guys haven't been back yet," The man muttered, wondering if those young people they'd encountered earlier that month had bailed on them after being sent out to gather supplies. His eyes wandered on the others, wondering who could possibly go out at a time like this and fill out the job that the previous guys had failed at.

His eyes landed on a couple. They were sitting in the corner, looking at a photo of their daughter.

With a relieved smile, he walked up to them. "Hey, Bill," He said to the man. "Some people kind of expect that you and your wife may have a job to fill out."

Bill sighed. "Sir, it's been less than a week since we hid out here," He pointed out. "Me and my wife are tired, and..."

"You see that girl over there?" Sir cut him off, and gestured to the unconscious girl lying next to her parents. "I don't think she'll make it unless you can do this for her. Don't you remember your daughter?"

Bill groaned, knowing that Sir was guilt-tripping him. To save any further manipulations, he complied, saying, "Okay, okay, I'll do it. I'll go out and be back in three hours at the most."

"I'm going with you," His wife said.

"Honey, please..."

"I'm going with you," She said stubbornly, getting up and zipping up to go out. "For our daughter."

Bill smiled gratefully, and kissed his wife. the two prepared to leave, when Sir stopped them for a moment.

"I just want you to know: your daughter Riley would have been proud of you."

* * *

 _Read and review.  
_


	4. The Hospital

_Okay, first things first, they are zombies. Well, unlike other examples, they're not DEAD per se, but they're infected. If they were dead, it'd be a whole different story..._

 _Anyways..._

 _Guest: Just read the above._

 _ErinMilne: Yeah, that was the intended reaction._

 _Satsui no Hado Ryu: Thank you._

 _The 379th Hero: I guess._

 _PotterPhantomKitten: Yeah, you're catching on!_

 _I am a burglar: Good, we can agree on something._

 _Antha1: They... are... zombies._

 _Korrasami 88: Eh, it'll be explained._

 _Drunken Hamster: Let's find out._

 _The Batista: Good luck._

* * *

Bill and Jill spent the next hour or so sneaking through the city in the afternoon. It would've been hard, as hundreds of infected people walked around the city at all times, but lucky for the couple, they had very short attention spans, so they were easy to outmaneuver.

The two pressed themselves against the wall of a hospital, peaking out the edge to see if the coast was clear. Unexpectedly, an infected dressed as a police officer burst out of a doughnut shop. The two immediately got down as the man turned in their direction, then turned the other way and shambled off.

* * *

Inside Bill's mind, Fear whispered, "No sick child should be worth this."

"We have to do it... for Riley," Anger said with courage. "We'll just have to hope we make it out of here safe and get back to HQ as soon as possible."

* * *

"No sick child should be worth this," Bill had been muttering for the past minute, even when Jill broke down the door to the hospital.

"Come on, Grandpa, at this rate we'll be back to HQ by Twilight," She joked, trying to lighten the mood. Bill, however, wasn't in the mood for jokes at such a dire time.

"Let's just get the supplies and leave," He whispered as they snuck into the hospital. The area seemed surprisingly vacant. The two would've expected the hospital of all places to be crawling with infected people.

The two began to rummage through the building for some medicines and anti-biotics. The two weren't surgeons, so they had a hard time figuring out which they should take.

"Needles, no... diagnostics, yes... BMET, maybe..." Jill mumbled to herself, tossing some useless vials to the floor. Unfortunately, they clanked rather loudly onto the ground, and the two immediately froze, wondering if anyone had heard anything.

For a moment, all was silent. All the two could hear were their own heartbeats. After a tense silence, the two resumed their work.

Then, Bill accidentally flicked a syringe onto the floor.

* * *

At a upper section of the building, Noose woke up from the hospital bed with a start.

"Did you hear that?" Noose's nerve asked from the barely functioning control panel, having pulled a lever to wake Noose up. The other emotions woke up from their sleep.

"It sounded like a... glass broke or something?" Pixie mumbled.

Brick slammed his fist on the control panel. "I hate it when I'm woken up!" He shouted, agitated. "I hate it, I hate it, I hate it!"

"Maybe a Freak is here?" Nerve suggested. "We have to sound the alarm!"

The other emotions instantly started shouting, "No! No! No! No! NO!"

Before they could stop him, Nerve pulled a lever, and Noose sprang up, grabbed a Plague Zone novel, and hurled it through a window. It crashed through the glass windowsill and crashed onto the road below, alerting several infected citizens.

They turned to the hospital, stared at the open door, and immediately began to shamble inside.

Among them was Yellowjacket.

* * *

"...Did they just sound an alarm?" Jill asked, having heard the window crash.

"Let's not stay to find out," Bill said as he shoved the last of the supplies into the bag. "We have to move. Now!"

The two of them began to head to the door, but stopped when they heard the sound of infected citizens beginning to shamble inside. Jill mouthed a swear word, and the two began to head in the opposite direction, hoping there would be some alternative escape route.

They stopped at a dark hallway when they barely made out the silhouette of a young girl, probably five or six, at the end of the hallway. The figure faced them, not moving. Then, for a moment, the lights flickered on, and the couple saw the dead eyes of an infected girl.

"Don't... make... a sound," Bill whispered to his wife. The girl stared at the two curiously, when suddenly the door open to reveal Noose.

Instantly, the girl shouting at the top of her lungs. Noose snapped his head over to the couple, forcing them to sprint ahead, shoving past the girl. Noose ran after them, but he had a hard time keeping up, as he was out of shape and not very athletic.

"Come on, I know an emergency exit down the hall!" Bill said, dragging his wife down the hallway at a fast pace. They were stopped in their tracks when a tall man blocked their way, growling at them. After a brief pause, Jill whipped out a handgun and shot the man in the knee, and he went down like a shack of bricks.

The two stepped over the man, and continued down the hallway when a woman came shrieking at them. Without a second thought, Bill jammed his fist into her face, sending her onto her back on the floor.

After turning another hallway, a shifty looking man blocked their way. Jill reached into her back, and pulled out a Playboy magazine.

"Here, catch!" She shouted, throwing it at him. The infected man grabbed the magazine, and curiously stared at the cover. He flipped a few pages in, and whispered sensually, "Oh, my..."

Jill and Bill took the opportunity to race through an emergency exit and outside a hospital. They lay on the door, trying to catch their breath after such a narrow escape.

"I love you..." The two said to one another, and they shared a kiss. They were interrupted by a pierce shriek, and a young girl darted out of the darkness towards them. Bill and Jill sidestepped out of the way, and the girl face-planted into the door. She slumped onto the ground, dazed from the blow.

"We have to get out of here," Bill said, staring down at the girl, but as they turned to leave, Jill said, "Wait..."

"What do you mean?" Bill asked, wondering if his wife had lost her mind. "More of them are coming."

"Look at her," Jill said, feeling the girl's face with her hand.

"Honey, don't... touch..." Bill stopped when he started to stare at the girl hard. Slowly, he began to recognize the girl's features.

"Oh my gosh, honey. It's Riley!"

* * *

 _Read and review.  
_


	5. Reunion

_Drunken Hamster: Guess you didn't have to wait long._

 _PotterPhantomKitten: I was hoping to apply some chemistry between the two, being husband and wife after all. And later on, chemistry between them and their daughter._

 _Js: Okay, you got it all right except for the part with Bill and Jill. They're looking for supplies, not the missing group._

 _Antha1: Come on, they wouldn't do that... the story would be over way too soon then._

 _The 379th Hero: Indeed it could..._

 _Korrasami 88:... You don't know? He was introduced in three chapters ago._

 _Satsui no Hado Ryu: Thank you._

 _The Batista: Oh look... nobody died._

 _I am a burglar: Stop whom, exactly. Because Riley (ahem, Yellowjacket) has already been dealt with._

* * *

About an hour later, Bill and Jill found themselves riding a double-seated bicycle with an unconscious Riley resting on Jill's back. An hour ago, neither had even questioned taking the girl with her, but as they were nearing the apartment, they began to have second thoughts.

"Honey, what are we even doing?" Bill asked, suddenly stopping the bike. "We're riding a bike nearly half our size carrying our _zombie_ daughter to an apartment full of people that shoot zombies for a living."

"Well, we couldn't just leave her!" Jill argued, reaching over to caress Riley's hair. "She's only thirteen, she can't take care of herself."

In her mind, however, Jill's emotions were having conflicting opinions on the matter at hand.

"We should _totally_ have left her," Jill's Fear said. "She's only thirteen; she can take care of herself."

"We can't abandon her again, we're her mother," Sadness argued. "What kind of parent would that make us?"

"Ones with common sense!" Disgust butted in. "We love our Riley, but the moment she wakes up, _we're_ at the top of her menu."

"But we love her, right?" Joy chimed in, hoping to ease the situation. "We can't just put a bullet in her head like we do the other zombies we come across. We're not monsters, after all."

The other emotions stared at Joy for a moment, then Sadness said, "Hey, who's controlling Jill?"

The emotions then realized that Jill had been staring mindlessly at a garbage can while the emotions had been bickering with each other. Suddenly, Bill shouted, "Hey, watch out!"

An infected man suddenly lunged at Jill, forcing the emotions to get back to the controls. Jill dodged out of the way, and she and Bill desperately dove towards a different building as dozens of infected citizens descended on them. They carried Riley with them.

"Okay, so we're taking Riley with us, no questions asked?" Jill asked, cradling Riley in her arms. Bill paused for a moment, hesitant for a moment, but upon receiving a begging look from his wife, nodded.

"Fine," He said, conceding.

* * *

The first thing Bill and Jill did was give Riley a bath. The two found it a rather awkward situation to give a thirteen year old a bath, much less a zombie, but it was much easier than they would've thought. They just dumped her in the bathtub (which they were amazed still worked) and turned the water on, then after ten minutes pulled her out and dried her up with a towel.

In the back of Bill's mind, he was wondering how Riley was managing to sleep through all of this. He pushed the thought away as he carried Riley to a bed.

Jill helped settle Riley down onto the bed. Now that things were quiet, the two took the moment to stare down at their daughter. Even though she was essentially a zombie, the two ignored that for the moment. Asleep, zombie Riley seemed almost as adorable as when she was normal. Bill let a tear slip out, as it had been nearly a year since the last time he'd seen his daughter.

Inside his mind, Fear noted, "You know, we should probably tie her to the bed in case she wakes up and... you know..."

Anger briefly snapped to attention, and said, "Fine. We don't want this to be a disaster."

Pulling out some duct tape, Bill taped Riley's wrists to the bed. Moments after he'd done this, the two heard Riley's breathing become heavier, followed by her eyes opening slightly.

Now that their zombified daughter was awake, Bill and Jill began to feel some worry now. The two backed away, wondering if Riley was going to lash out at them once she had fully regained consciousness.

Riley's eyes widened, and she stared at the two. However, neither Bill nor Jill saw murderous intent in her eyes.

If anything, the two saw terror.

* * *

"What's happening?" Nerve asked, shaking frigidly, at the control panel. The emotions had been knocked unconscious the moment Riley had collided with that wall nearly an hour ago, and now that they had awoken, they'd stirred Riley awake. But, they hadn't expected to be in the situation they were in.

The emotions soon noticed Bill and Jill in the room with them. "Gah!" Pixie shouted, jumping. "It's the Freaks!"

"Are they going to kill us?" Teardrop asked. "That's sad."

"We have to get out of here!" Brick suggested, and started beating on the control panel and pulling levers, anything to get Yellowjacket to struggle against her restraints. However, she was still weakened, so she could do little more than pull futilely against the tape.

After a moment, Pixie said, "Guys, we're stuck."

Brick turned in her direction. "No we're not. We're just... we're stuck."

The emotions stared blankly at each other. Then, Brick's head lit aflame, and he screamed in anger.

Meanwhile, Star began to stare hard at the two Freaks that stood in front of her. She couldn't help but think that she'd seen those two somewhere before.

As she did, nobody noticed the core memories in the dysfunctional circular tray begin to glow...

* * *

Bill and Jill stared blankly as Riley started screaming at the top of her lungs. She was making no attempt at fighting back at her restraints, so they had no idea why she was bothering to scream now.

"I'm beginning to think this was a bad idea," Bill whispered to himself. Jill meanwhile, cautiously approached her daughter, and rested her hand on her forehead.

"Hey, dear... ssh, we're here, it's okay," She whispered to sooth Riley. She only realized after she said those words how weird it was, given the situation. It did apparently seemed to ease Riley, as she stopped shouting.

Bill just stared at his wife and daughter, unsure what to make of the situation. Riley just stared up at the two now, looking like she was about to cry.

Then, she shocked them both by speaking.

"Who are you?" She asked, flinching as she spoke. Bill and Jill backed away, not knowing that zombies could ask such questions. They had heard the infected speak before, but it had always been things like, "Maul!" or "Ravage!" or "Oh, my..."

After struggling to find their words, Bill said, "...We're your dad and mom. Riley."

Riley stared hard at the two, trying to comprehend what they had just told her. Eventually, she responded.

"Who's Riley?" She asked. "My name is Yellowjacket."

Bill and Jill stared at her.

"...Oh, dear..." They both said in unison.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	6. Glimmer

_The 379th Hero: Did... you just go psychic?_

 _Drunken Hamster: Usually, I try to make my chapters at least over a 1000 words long at the minimum. I may try to make the chapters longer, though._

 _Satsui no Hado Ryu: Thanks._

 _Miss Storyholic: It was mentioned that the zombies were always able to talk, just not perform cohesive sentences, at least, not to 'Freaks'. As for the emotions... no idea._

 _Antha1: You didn't know?_

 _The Batista: Whoa, no need to strong language!_

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Prank the zombie who could rip your throat open?_

 _I am a burglar: Go ahead._

 _Korrasami 88: Joy was based on a star. I've explained why I called Disgust Pixie already._

 _TheDisneyFan365: Okay then._

 _PotterPhantomKitten: Well, it'll be a long process._

 _Js: You'll find out._

 _Creamy Buttercup: Riley? She's already a zombie._

* * *

Father and mother and daughter looked at each other, all three trying to grasp their current situation. Riley had all but given up on her struggles; she knew that even if she escaped her bonds, the Freaks in front of her were bigger and stronger than she was, and she had no chance of leaving.

Jill knelt down in front of her daughter. "Riley, I'm your mamma," She pleaded, practically begging for Riley to recognize her. However, she could see in Riley's lifeless, clouded eyes that she wasn't the same loving little girl she had been nearly a year ago.

"Don't you remember me?" She asked, trying to keep herself together in front of her daughter. "Grandma?" She recalled the affectionate nickname Riley had called her sometimes, hoping that would jog memories. However, she still got no response.

Riley looked on the verge of tears, which Bill and Jill took to mean she was sad because she couldn't remember her past. They hadn't seen a zombie look so heartbroken, and they hadn't seen Riley look so heartbroken since the day she ran away. That was a memory all three of them wishes they could lock up.

"I don't know," Riley spat out indignantly. Jill held back tears, and Bill rested a hand on her shoulder and knelt down with her.

"Come on, you have to remember your own mom and dad," He begged to her. Riley shook her head, her cold eyes never leaving the two. After a few moments, Jill and Bill got to their feet.

"What do we do now?" Jill asked, whispering so Riley didn't overhear. "She doesn't remember us."

"Well we can't just let her leave," Bill whispered back. "She's in human territory by now, or at least what's left of it. If the others see her, they'll surely kill her. I don't think we have a choice but to leave her here."

"But... this doesn't feel right," Jill pointed out. "We're practically holding our daughter captive against her will."

"Hey, we're her parents," Bill replied. "That makes it better."

* * *

"How the *%& does that make it better?" Anger asked Joy, who had pressed the button in order to send out that response.

"Hey, come on, we've done a lot of things that didn't feel right this past year," Joy explained indignantly. "We've put a lot of bullets into those zombies. Way more than I'd have liked to, but Anger and Fear was driving those times."

"It was self-defense!" Fear defended, springing up. "Besides, those video-games made it look way easier than it really is."

"I know, right," Sadness said, stroking his mustache. "Honestly, how many bullets does it take to put down one of those walkers? Like, twenty-five?"

"We're getting sidetracked here!" Anger said, slamming his fist on the control panel. "Okay, we'll give Joy the benefit of the doubt here, but don't you ever use that language on our wife again, capiche?!"

"...Did you just say capiche?"

* * *

While Bill was zoning out, Jill looked at her bag on the dresser, and her eyes widened in shock.

"Oh my gosh, Bill, the meds!" She panicked briefly, snapping Bill out of his trance. Instantly, she grabbed the bag, saying, "We're late! We have to get back there now!"

"What about me?" Riley chimed.

"Stay put!" Bill demanded, and he and his wife left the apartment with the bags, leaving Riley still strapped to the bed.

In her mind, Nerve asked, "What do we do now? We're stuck, and they'll surely be back eventually!"

Brick ran to the control panel. "Maybe if we struggle more, we can get out of these bonds," He suggested. He began to work on the console, causing Yellowjacket to start pulling on the tape, struggling to break free. She growled out as the tape stuck to her skin. She thrashed and kicked and punched and bit, all to try and get free and then return home before the Freaks got back.

The tape began to tear a bit, even as Yellowjacket began to loose energy.

"You're doing it!" Nerve whispered hopefully, encouraging Brick to continue. His head lit up into a flame, roaring out as Yellowjacket used all her strength to fight back against her bonds.

While the other emotions focused on freeing Yellowjacket, Star noticed the core memories start to glimmer softly. Star stared at them, not remembering the last time she had seen the core memories actually glow. They had turned gray a long time ago, and they'd only gotten grayer since then.

Cautiously, Star approached them. The core memories were glimmering ever so slightly, but not by much. It was only a flicker, but it was enough to catch Star's attention.

Star tapped onto tray, releasing the memories. She grabbed hold of one of them, and stared at it as it interchanged between gold and gray. She stared into it hard, trying to see if she could catch any motion within it.

Star thought she could make out three figures within the memories, the three in close contact with each other, but her attention was diverted by Yellowjacket struggling against her bonds. Her screams of anguish caused her to lose focus.

"Guys, quiet down!" She snapped, turning to face them. The emotions stopped struggling, causing Yellowjacket to slump onto the bed.

"Come here," Star urged them. "It's a core memory. It's glowing."

"It is?" Teardrop asked hopefully, and the emotions immediately ran towards Star to see it. If a memory was actually glowing, this was big news.

The emotions circled around Star as she tried to replay the memory. In the center of it, she could see the three figures, but it was so dark that she couldn't make out who they were. She replayed it repeatedly, trying to see if she recognized anything from Yellowjacket's past. Outside the mind, Yellowjacket herself was seeing flickers of her past, but not enough to make out anything spectacular.

"It's fading!" Nerve pointed out. Indeed, the memory was starting to turn gray again.

"She's losing focus!" Star said, repaying the memory more urgently now. "Come on, we have to make sure to remember this."

The emotions urged Star to keep replaying the memory, all of them trying to pinpoint something from Yellowjacket's past. However, despite their efforts, the memory continued to fade.

"No, no, no, no no..." They all chanted until the memory finally turned gray again, prompting an extended, "Nooooooo..." From all five of them.

"We were so close," Teardrop lamented. "That's sad."

Star's hopeful smile was replaced with a gloomy frown. She trembled as she set the memory back into the tray, wondering how they could have been so close to discovering Yellowjacket's past, and yet so far away.

"Come on, let's see if we can break those bonds," Brick said as the emotions returned to the console, leaving Joy by the tray. She continued to stare at the core memories.

She wondered if this would truly be the last time they saw them glow. As she did, her own glow began to fade.

* * *

While Yellowjacket had been attempting to unlock her past, Bill and Jill had sneaked downstairs and opened the door to where the infected were wondering about. To divert their attention, Bill flicked on a flashlight and aimed its light down the street. The zombies had immediately followed the direction of the light, allowing Bill and Jill to sneak past them.

After darting into the hotel, the two walked over the dozens of corpses laying on the floor, and took off upstairs. They hoped that the sooner they arrived, the less angry the rest of the group would be.

When they finally made it back, They were met with Sir's stony face, his gray eyes staring into theirs.

"Oh, hey sir?" Bill said, chuckling nervously and scratching the back of his head. "We, uh, got the supplies." He handed out the bag, which Sir snatched away.

"And where the Hell were you this whole time?" He asked. Bill and Jill realized that all eyes were on him and his wife.

"Oh, you know, places," He murmured, and looked to his wife for support. "Me and my wife just needed some... alone time with each other?" Jill nodded in agreement.

Sir put his hands on his hips. "Oh, didn't know it was Wednesday already, Bill," He retorted.

"Oh ha-ha," Bill said sarcastically. "Next time you want to to complain, why don't you drag your lazy butt across the city to look for supplies in the middle of a zombie apocalypse."

Jill grabbed Bill's wrist. "Come on, we'll sleep in the next room," She told everyone else, and she dragged Bill outside into the hallway.

When they were down the end of the hall, she whispered, "Well, we nearly blew that one. How are we supposed to keep our zombie daughter a secret from everyone else? And how do we keep her from lunching on our brains?"

"Did you see her back there?" Bill asked. "She looked like she didn't want to kill us. She spoke to us, Jill. Do you really think she remembers us?"

"Not enough, I guess," Jill murmured. "We lost her once, we can't lose her again."

"And we're not going to, honey," Bill said determined, and shared a kiss with his wife. The two embraced each other tightly, holding back tears.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	7. Escape

_The 379th Hero: Oh, you think?_

 _Drunken Hamster: That... wasn't the hockey memory._

 _Satsui no Hado Ryu: Let's find out._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Can you defeat her, though?_

 _Creamy Buttercap: And as your master, I say you can't do that._

 _I am a burglar: What are you going to do, dissect her brain?_

 _The Batista: I was being sarcastic._

 _Antha1: Hint: It's not them._

 _Korrasami 88: Moving on._

 _PotterPhantomKitten: Yeah, me too._

* * *

"Guys, we're not getting anywhere with this," Star said to the other emotions. They had spent the whole night trying to get Yellowjacket to break free from her binds, but all the struggling her immensely wore her out, and she didn't have enough strength to tear away at the tape holding her down.

"We have to get free!" Brick argued as he pulled a ever to make Yellowjacket jerk her arm up. It did little to release her from her binds, though.

"We have to strategize!" Pixie suddenly suggested. Yellowjacket immediately thought to scan the room for anything she could use a weapon. Her eyes fell on a lamp, which was just close enough for her to grab it.

Yellowjacket began to strike the leg of the bed with the lamp, since the tape was attached to it. When that proved futile, Yellowjacket smashed the light bulb within the lamp. An idea sprang into her mind.

"That's it!" Star said hopefully. Yellowjacket grabbed the glass, and began to use the broken end of the light bulb to slice through the tape. Rather quickly, the glass severed the tape, freeing her arm.

"Yes!" All five emotions shouted in unison.

Yellowjacket reached to her other arm, and slashed the tape with the light bulb, freeing her arms. She immediately reached towards her feet, and used to teeth to gnaw at the tape, biting it off.

Soon enough, Yellowjacket was free. "I'm free!" She, and by extension the emotions, shouted joyfully. She sprang off the bed, ecstatic at having escaped. Immediately, she began to run out the room, down the hallway, and out the apartment. She was met with multiple zombies outside, but she paid them no attention.

"We have to get back to our house!" Star reminded the other emotions. With that insight, Yellowjacket began to run down the streets, trying to remember where she lived.

* * *

Jill woke up. She hadn't gotten much sleep, as all she could think about was her daughter. She had always thought of her daughter the past year, but now, she was of the foremost attention. Now that she was awake, she couldn't wait to reunite with her.

"Honey, wake up," She whispered, shaking Bill's shoulder. The man groaned loudly as he forced himself awake.

"Come on, honey, it's not a work day," He groaned, then regained his memory and suddenly shouted, "Oh hey, our daughter!"

Instantly, he sprang out of bed, shouting, "Come on, we have to go check up on her!"

The two ran through the apartment, out the door, and into the next apartment, with Jill wondering aloud, "I hope she's not too upset about us... taping her down last night."

"Oh, you know teenagers," Bill said in an attempt to lighten the mood. "However, we can explain everything to her once we..."

The two froze when they opened the door and saw that the room was empty. Nobody was there.

"...Riley?" The two said in unison. They scoured the room, looking for some sign of her, but all they found was a broken lamp and pieces of duct tape on the floor.

"Bill, she's escaped!" Jill shouted, even though Bill had already figured it out. The man knelt down next to the bed.

"She can't run away from us again," He said. "She can't... we have to find her!"

Under most circumstances, Jill would've objected to the idea of wondering through an infested city without a backup plan, but at the moment, maternal instincts took over, as well as Bill's own paternal instincts.

The two raced out the door and down the stairs, and out of the apartment. They were noticed by scores of infected citizens wandering through the streets, but Bill and Jill shoved past them easily.

"How do we know where she went?" Bill asked.

"That's easy," Jill said as she went in the direction Yellowjacket had gone. "We gave her a bath, remember. Those walkers probably haven't washed since they were infected. Can't you smell her from here?"

Bill took a whiff, and said, "She can't have gone far! Let's go!"

* * *

Sawbones, Ghoul and Noose loitered around inside a room in the women's bathroom at a Tim Horton's store. Sawbones was entertaining himself by slicing the walls with his butcher knife, and Noose sat on a toilet seat, a bottle of beer in his hand, his eyes unfocused and foggy.

"Anyone seen Yellow...jacket?" Noose asked nobody in particular. He'd been asking the same question every ten minutes, and had gotten no response from the other two zombies in the room. Ghoul just shrugged, and stared at herself in the mirror, her eyes wide open. After a few moments, she punched the mirror, shattering it.

"I hope she's okay," Ghoul eventually mumbled. She let out a sigh, and hugged herself tightly.

Suddenly, a new smell slowly entered the room. The zombies were taken aback by it.

"What... what's that?" Noose asked, jolting up from the toilet. He looked around in confusion.

Sawbones clenched his knifes, wondering if any Freaks had shown up. Ghoul faced the door, nervous. Slowly, the two inched towards the door, and creaked it open. Noose followed.

Outside the store, Yellowjacket wandered by, pretending not to notice as the other citizens stopped to stare at her. Yellowjacket hadn't noticed before due to all that had happened, but now that she had escaped, she realized something.

She stunk.

As much as she tried to ignore it, she was emitting a different smell towards the other zombies. She figured the Freaks must have did it to her while she was unconscious. She felt awkward with all the eyes on her, so she darted into an alley and continued to walk.

Slowly, she walked, trying to find her way home, keeping her head lowered. She just wanted to get home, and pretend that the events of the previous night hadn't happened.

Suddenly, Yellowjacket screamed in pain and broke down on the floor. She felt something in her mind go numb, and she was hit with a flash of images before her eyes.

She saw herself, wearing a dark jacket as opposed to her yellow jacket. She saw herself wandering down a street alone, just like she was doing now. Then, she saw herself on a moving vehicle. Finally, she saw herself in the embrace of two people, whom she felt she knew somehow.

Yellowjacket cried out and collapsed on the ground.

* * *

"What's happening!" Nerve asked as the five emotions huddled close together, watching as one of the core memories burst with color. It was the same one that had done so the previous night.

"It's even brighter then before!" Teardrop noted. "Something about all this reminds her of something!"

"Quick, grab it!" Pixie demanded as she hid behind Brick. Hesitantly, Star darted over and grabbed the memory. In it, she could see things more clearly. She saw herself, and two adults. She recognized them.

"It's those Freaks!" She stated.

"What?!" The other four emotions asked as they huddled around Star to stare at the memory. Indeed, they saw Riley in the embrace of the two Freaks from last night.

"When did that happen?" Pixie asked. Before Star could respond, the emotions were snapped out of their thoughts when they heard a voice shout, "Riley!"

* * *

Yellowjacket turned around, and was horrified to see the Freaks approaching her. She was about to run, but hesitated. In her mind, she felt like she remembered them from her past.

 _"Run!"_

That word repeated in her mind. The two Freaks approached, shouting, "Riley!" repeatedly.

Ultimately, Yellowjacket decided to obey the word she was hearing in her mind.

She ran.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	8. Runaway

_Satsui no Hado Ryu: I wish I could tell her that. Oh wait, I'm writing her actions..._

 _Drunken Hamster: Oh. I thought you were talking about when Riley lost the hockey match when she moved to San Francisco. But, no, it was still a different memory._

 _Korrasami 88: It's a start._

 _PotterPhantomKitten: You pretty much hit the nail on the head there._

 _The 379th Hero: Be more specific next time._

 _Antha1: Riley (Yellowjacket) doesn't really want to hurt them. As for the duct tape thing, they technically taped her arms to the bed's legs._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: If you don't care, why are you reading this?_

 _Creamy Buttercap: You are a monster, plain and simple._

 _I am a burglar: Uh, sure. You got a shrink ray, or something._

 _Js: Yeah, sure thing._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: That's no way to talk to the protagonist._

* * *

Yellowjacket felt her heart racing as she took off down the streets, the Freaks right behind her. As she ran, she felt a nagging feeling that she should stay where she was. She knew the Freaks were from her past, but what roe did they play in it. Against her better judgement, she continued to flee.

"Riley!" The two shouted behind her as they followed her. Yellowjacket was still confused by the name. Was that what she had been called in a past-life? Her head began to ache. Her mind wasn't adapted to the series of conflicting memories that where channeling through her. She knew she needed someplace to rest, where she could put the strain on her mind at ease and properly connect things together.

Thinking quickly, she darted into a nearby, unfinished building. Without bothering to close the door, she ran up the stairs, and randomly picked a hallway to dart into. Then, she ran inside a room, closed the door, and sat down next to it.

She began breathing heavily to recover her breath. She wondered if she had truly escaped yet. Hopefully, the Freaks would leave if they didn't find her yet.

* * *

Outside the building, Jill asked, "Did you see her run inside there?"

"Yeah, but she couldn't have gone too far," Bill reassured. "She's a zombie, and they're not too bright."

Jill turned to glare at her husband, who shrugged meekly, adding, "It's true."

Before the two could say anything else, they heard a growl coming from down the street. At the far end of the street, they saw three zombies appear from around the corner of the building.

One of them was holding butcher knifes, the second, a young woman, looked like a ghoul, and the third was dressed as a businessman. They took one look at the couple, and charged at them. Bill and Jill heard the sounds of more zombies nearing the area.

"Oh, this morning just keeps getting better and better," Bill said sarcastically. "If we survive, tell Riley the next time she acts out, we're double duct-taping her."

As the zombies neared the couple, they immediately bolted through the open door and shut it behind them. They moved anything they could to barricade the door, including a suitcase and a chair. As they finished, a hand smashed through the window, and the couple immediately took off up the stairs.

"Crap," Bill said, remembering something. "We didn't take any weapons with us."

Jill paused, and sighed deeply, before saying, "It doesn't matter. I can smell Riley from here. She's... there!"

She turned to the left, followed by her husband. They ran down the hallway, and stopped at the door. Leaning against it, they heard breathing coming from in the room. The couple turned to each other, nodded, then opened the door.

The moment they opened the door, they were surprised to see Riley chuck a vase at them. They recovered in seconds, though, and dodged under it. Jill dove and grabbed hold of Riley, hoisting her into the air. Riley instinctively tried to bite, but Bill grabbed her by her hair, jerking her head away from Jill's neck.

It secretly pained Bill to have to use violence on a child, especially his daughter, but he felt he had no choice. Holding a struggling Riley, he roughly carried her out the room with Jill following.

As they exited the room, they were suddenly tackled by the three zombies they'd seen earlier. Riley was dropped from her faughter's arms as the zombie who looked like a ghoul shoved him backwards and caused him to nearly fall, while the two male zombies tackled Jill.

Jill instinctively socked the businessman-like zombie in the face, causing him to slump onto the ground, unconscious. She was secretly surprised that he'd gone down so quickly, but was snapped out of her thoughts by the other zombie swinging his knives at her. She was shocked at how fast he was moving; it took all of her strength and agility to dodge his attacks.

Bill decked the ghoul zombie in the face, knocking her to the side. The two got to their feet, and Bill briefly sneaked a glance at Riley to make sure she wasn't hurt. The ghoul zombie took the opportunity to charge at him, but he sidestepped out of the way, and she ran into the wall. He then grabbed her and slammed her against the wall again, and she fell to the floor, stunned.

With two zombies unconscious, Bill turned his attention to the knife-wielding one. He shielded his wife from the blades, and was diced in the arm by one knife. Riley watched, conflicted, as the three adults fought each other.

Bill managed to parry one blow, and punched the zombie in the face, causing him to stumble. He punched him again in the gut, but he sprang out with the knife, causing Bill to fall backwards into his wife. The two tumbled onto the ground, the zombie standing above them.

Bill and Jill waited to be stabbed, but instead heard a loud crash above them. Looking up, they saw the zombie drop his knives and fall forward, unconscious. The two saw a bruise on the back of his head.

They looked up, and saw Riley standing behind the fallen zombie, holding the smashed vase in her trembling hands. She dropped the vase, clearly surprised at what she had done, and then looked at Bill and Jill. The two stared up at Riley, wondering what she'd do now.

Then, to the couple's shock, Riley reached down and extended a hand to them.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	9. The Idea

_Korrasami 88: Well, sort of._

 _Drunken Hamster: No, the knife won't infect him._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Just wait for the next chapter, which is now._

 _Satsui no Hado Ryu: Good._

 _The 379th Hero: Because is it._

 _Antha1: She is not killing them. She just knocked them out._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: You do that. I wonder how your prank will backfire._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Because you are a villain._

 _I am a burglar: Shrink ray? Oh, yeah..._

 _PotterPhantomKitten: You bet._

 _Roxygoth: Alright, then._

* * *

Yellowjacket wasn't quite sure what she was doing anymore. For some time, all she'd wanted was to get away from these two Freaks, who had done nothing but kill and maim people. Then, suddenly, she found herself holding hands with them as they walked down the street towards the building she'd spent a night trying to escape from.

"So, uh... is there pizza at the apartment?" Yellowjacket asked. "Without broccoli?"

"Yep," The male Freak said with a faux smile, before letting out a small laugh. Yellowjacket didn't quite understand Freaks, but she knew when someone was so obviously faking their emotions.

The three were rather surprised that they hadn't run into any infected citizens, since the city was usually crawling with them. Nevertheless, they soon found themselves at the front of the apartment door.

Yellowjacket felt the woman's hand tighten around her own as she was led back through the door. She noticed things in the building she hadn't before; there was blood and cryptic writing on the walls, and she noticed a few bodies lying in the darkened corridors. She shivered as she was led up the stairs.

Before long, Yellowjacket found herself back in the room she had just escaped from. Once they were inside, Yellowjacket sat down on the bed. It seemed comfier now.

"So, uh, what was with that back there?" The male Freak, who Yellowjacket had come to refer to as "Bill", asked. "You clonked that guy pretty hard."

Yellowjacket gave a shrug. "I don't know," She mumbled out.

"Oh," Bill said. There was an awkward silence, and then Jill nudged him and whispered, "The gang is probably worrying about us. We should go."

The gang had almost slipped Bill's mind. "Yeah, we should do that," He said, feigning concern for them. Right before leaving, he turned to Yellowjacket and said, "Riley."

"Yes?" Yellowjacket asked. She still wanted to be known as Yellowjacket, but she'd just come to accept that they'd be referring to her as 'Riley' from now on, so she didn't bother correcting them.

"Promise you won't run off," Bill pleaded.

Yellowjacket sighed. ""Fine," She whispered. Bill smiled and he and Jill took off outside. The moment they were out of the room, Yellowjacket remembered something.

She didn't know what a promise was.

* * *

 _ **(In Yellowjacket's Mind)**_

"Why did we just do that?" Brick asked Star as the emotions crowded around her. "Did we really just do _THAT_?!"

"Did we honestly run away from something just so we could go back to it?" Teardrop questioned. "What a sad waste of previous energy."

"We hit Sawbones!" Nerve cried out. "We whacked him upside the head! What's he going to do when he comes to?"

"Relax, he doesn't know it was us," Pixie pointed out with a sly smirk. "We totally blindsided him!"

"Everyone, calm down!" Star interrupted, causing all attention to divert to her. "Now, I know this may seem weird, but I think we might be better off with them."

"WHAT?!" All four emotions shouted. Star then noticed several red and green emotions start to flicker before turning gray again, reminiscent of the emotions Yellowjacket was feeling at the moment.

"Now, here me out," Star said, backing away slowly. "Ever since we've been with those Freaks, we've been getting out memories back. And they were from our past, I know it! They were in the core memories, so they must have played a big part in our history!"

"Oy, what's with all the big words?" Brick asked, rubbing his temple. Star ignored the comment, and instead took a dim light bulb and placed it into the control panel.

"So, I suggest we stay here and... play it cool, so they don't suspect anything is up," Star continued, placing the light bulb in the control panel. "Then, when those Freaks get Yellowjacket's memories back... we eat them!"

"Ooh," The four other emotions said in awe, then they broke out into cheering and clapping.

"Who's the greatest?" Star asked.

"You are!" The other four emotions stated. As they did, the panel lit up as the idea started to take affect in Yellowjacket's mind.

 **Get memories back - then eat filthy Freaks!**

Outside of Yellowjacket's mind, the infected girl smiled in delight as the idea came into their mind.

* * *

 _Yeah, this was a short chapter and all, but anyways, read and review._


	10. Dream

_Antha: Oh, you want to be a comedian? I want to be a filmmaker._

 _Korrasami 88: It's her choice._

 _Satsui no Hado Ryu: Let's find out if she will._

 _Guest: Oh, thank you._

 _Joshua: Oh, for the love of..._

 _The Batista: Oh look... everyone's moving._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Because Yellowjacket doesn't want your pie. She wants your brain._

 _Creamy Buttercap: OW!_

 _I am a burglar: Yeah, I find it funny to make the positive emotion sadistic in a way. It won't last, though. Maybe..._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Like what?_

* * *

Yellowjacket spent the next several hours sleeping in the bed she had been trapped not so long ago. Yellowjacket's mind usually wasn't as clear when she was asleep; whenever her eyes closed and she allowed her mind to ease itself, she'd enter a void of anarchy. When she dreamed, it felt as if there was some attempt to order being created, but instead just culminated in more chaos.

But now, Yellowjacket found that things were slightly different. When she was asleep, there was more organization; at least, compared to before.

* * *

In Dream Productions, the Dream Director was shouting directions to the other inhabitants of Riley's disturbed mind.

"Alright, people, it's been nearly a year since we've had even a relatively-functioning sleep," She explained to the actors and actresses. "But now I've just gotten info from Headquarters that Yellowjacket's memories are starting to get restored, so we can go back to work now!"

Some of the actors groaned, having somewhat enjoyed spending the year slacking off. But, reluctantly, they got into position for filming. The last thing they wanted was to upset the Director.

The cameras started rolling as Yellowjacket entered dreaming stage.

* * *

Yellowjacket found herself lost in the empty, barren streets of the city. She felt naked, feeling the stinging ice cold wisps of the wind bite into her skin like a rattlesnake.

Yellowjacket looked around, lost and confused, as she tried to find some way to find her way back home. However, suddenly, the lights were inexplicably shut off, and Yellowjacket found herself plunged into darkness.

Yellowjacket screamed and started to run, shouting, "Ghoul? Noose? Sawbones, are any of you here?!"

She stopped when she heard a hushed whisper.

 _"Riley..."_

"What?" She asked, shivering and turning around to face pure darkness. She was met with a cold silence, and pitch black emptiness, but slowly, she could make out dark figures in the distance. They were tall and rigid, and their heads were hung low.

"Freaks?" Yellowjacket wondered aloud, and she looked around, trying to see if she could find a way to avoid them.

As Yellowjacket looked around, she could see hundreds, if not thousands of these figures appearing in the darkness. Nobody where she turned, she could find no escape from the creatures that surrounded her.

 _"Riley..."_ The voice said, this time echoing from all sides. Yellowjacket turned around, muttering incoherent sentences out of fear, and she saw one figure, only inches away from her, towering ten feet in the air above her. Yellowjacket looked up at the behemoth, cowering meekly in its path.

 _"Come with us, Riley."_ The voice whispered again, and Yellowjacket felt a cold, strong hand grip her shoulder, and she found herself staring up at one of the figures. Slowly, the thousands of figures advanced towards her.

"No, get away!" Yellowjacket shouted, tearing out of the thing's grip and running. She would make a turn to the left, then the right, darting past the giants as they made attempts to grab her. However, nobody how many creatures she passed, there were a thousand more waiting for her.

She ran into the stomach of one of them, and gasped before turning away and running down an empty alley.

 _"Riley, we need you to come with us,"_ The voice urged, whispering in her ear. _"We'll make all of this better."_

"No!" Yellowjacket pleaded, breaking down in the alleyway. She looked up, and found herself surrounded by thousands of giants, all advancing onto her, their arms extended to grab her.

"No, get away!" Yellowjacket shouted, holding up her arms to shield herself.

"Riley?" A familiar voice said, and she looked up to see, in the center of the giants, the warm face of Bill and Jill.

"W-What?" Yellowjacket asked.

"We need you to come home now, Riley," Jill said soothingly, extending a hand for Yellowjacket to hold. Yellowjacket stared up at them, and felt the urge to reach up to them.

* * *

In Headquarters, the emotions watched the dream as it reached its climax.

"...Are those guys doing what I think they're doing?" Brick asked, raising an eyebrow. Immediately, Nerve squeaked, grabbed a lever, and pulled it, waking Yellowjacket up from her dream. The dream immediately dispersed.

"Phew, that was a close one," Star said with a smile. "She nearly got too attached to those Freaks there."

Brick stomped over to the precipice overlooking Dream Productions, and shouted out, "Hey, knock it off you guys! We don't need to confuse the girl any more than she already is!"

There was a silence, and then a voice shouted out, "Sorry," From Dream Productions. Brick turned back and returned to the console.

"We still got the idea in her head?" Teardrop asked. Star nodded slowly.

"Hopefully we have no more incidents like that for the next few days," She whispered, folding her arms.

The other emotions nodded.

* * *

Yellowjacket sat up in her bed, breathing heavily. She looked around the room, and saw that she wasn't lost in the city, but was still in her bed. Slowly, she got up, and paced through the room.

After a while, Yellowjacket entered the washroom, and turned on the sink, letting the water rush down. She stared at it, then dipped her hands in it, and splashed the water over her face and shoulders. She let the cold liquid drip down her nose and hair, breathing slowly, then shut the sink off. She wiped her face with her hands, and then stared at her reflection in the mirror.

She saw the pale skin. The blue veins. The bloodshot eyes, and the black lips. She'd been accustomed to that appearance for some time, but only now she was beginning to think that maybe, what she was looking at wasn't normal.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	11. Food

_Drunken Hamster: Yeah, at that point, I didn't have a lot on my mind to write. Sorry._

 _Wealthy man: What the rich guy said._

 _GANGSTA: Ugh..._

 _Candlehead: Really, when?_

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Yeah, you do that. Moving on..._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Release the beast._

 _Korrasami 88: Hooray!_

 _Al Drin Hoshizora:... What did you say?_

 _Antha1: But... but... ISN'T THERE MORE TO LIFE?!_

 _Satsui no Hado Ryu: But the dream is in the eye of the beholder... no idea why I just said that._

 _Js: Yeah, that's unexpected. Your at odds with your own feelings. Maybe becoming a zombie does that to you._

 _I am a burglar: Try again next time, buddy._

 _The Batista: Whatever._

* * *

Bill and Jill had hoped that when they'd returned to the apartment, nobody would've questioned why neither of them had been there when the rest of the group woke up. Alas, fate had not been kind to them for the past year.

"Hey, Mr. Andersen, where were you guys?" A somewhat portly man named Bob asked the moment they walked through the door. "We were wondering when you'd get back here. We were worried."

"Really?" Bill asked, briefly having a glimmer of hope that the group actually gave two cents about him and his wife's well-being.

"Yeah... we needed you to go out and get some food for us," Bob continued. "We're starving."

Bill's optimistic smile slowly turned to a grumpy frown. Jill sighed.

"But, but... we spent this morning running through the city," Bill said, trying to earn some sympathy. "We're exhausted."

"Yeah, but you two have proven to be the most competent out of all of us," One woman noted. "Nobody has managed to go on more missions and come back so many times with so little bites and scratches on you. Heck, did you see what happened to the last group we sent out?"

"No, we didn't," Jill said. "We haven't seen them."

Sir, who was sitting on a couch, growled out, "Just go."

Jill saw her husband's face start to go red, and she whispered, "Calm down. Let's just go now."

"But, but, but..."

"Come on," Jill said, and yanked her husband out the door.

* * *

 _ **(In Bill's Mind)**_

"...What just happened there?" Bill's Anger asked, staring blankly at the screen. "Did they really just... after all we've..."

"Oh, I'll tell you what happened," Disgust said, his arms folded crossly. "The same thing that's happened for nearly a year since this whole outbreak started."

Anger sighed. "What are we doing with our lives?" He asked, slumping into his chair.

"Well, we found our daughter," Joy pointed out in an attempt to lighten the situation. However, he shrunk down when he felt the mood seem to get darker instead.

"Yeah, bit if we get bitten or scratched, that's definitely going to come to naught," Fear lamented. "I wish one of those lazy bastards would get up and risk their lives for once."

After getting over Fear using such a word, Anger said, "When we played those zombie games, the team always stuck together. Why can't life be a video-game?"

The emotions stopped at the door, and opened it to see the infected crowding in the streets.

"...Game over, man," Fear whispered.

* * *

Bill and Jill held hands as the faced the dozens of infected citizens that had turned their attention to them. Hundreds of eyes filled with murderous intent locked in on the two, and the husband and wife knew that they were being faced with a fight or flight situation. And they only had a few seconds to decide which to use.

The zombies charged. Bill and Jill chose fight.

Bill punched one zombie in the face and elbowed another in the nose, knocking them back. Jill slammed the butt of her gun into another's face, sending him stumbling into a group of other zombies. She then swung it like a bat, striking multiple zombies across the face and stunning them.

With the first wave temporarily beaten back, Bill and Jill took the opportunity to run. The zombies were poised to follow them, but they were distracted when a shiny golden coin was chucked over their heads and went flying into an alleyway. Intrigued, the zombies ran after the object.

Nobody saw Yellowjacket at the open window, giving a triumphant smile and whispering, "Score."

Bill and Jill didn't notice what Yellowjacket had done, but they had noticed that the zombies weren't chasing them anymore. They didn't waste time, though; it wouldn't be long until the zombies returned.

Bill and Jill stopped at the nearest supplie of food.

"Quick, you have that dollar?" Jill asked as they stood in front of the nearbye vending machine. Bill fumbled in his pocket, pulled out the coin, and tossed it in to get a two bags of chips and a chocolate bar. The coin went in, and the food began to roll out.

"Yes!" Jill shouted in triumph. Bill, however, noticed groaning coming from down the alley, and he turned around, and his face paled.

"Uh, honey..." He whispered, tapping her on the back and pointing to the right. She turned around, and saw a group of rather gangly-looking zombies standing in the alley, wearing the sort of clothes that implied they had been unemployed before the outbreak began.

"Well, you're bound to find at least one of them around here," Jill whispered.

The zombies charged. Bill and Jill turned to the vending machine.

"Come on now..." They whispered urgently, hoping the junk food came out before the zombies reached them. However, it was taking an extraordinarily long time for it to land.

The zombies howled as they drew nearer. Bill began sweating, and Jill's breathing slowed.

The zombies were now a few inches away. One of them opened its mouth wide and lunged at Jill's neck.

At that precise moment, Bill grabbed the zombie by the throat and smashed its head through the vending machine's window just as the chips were released. Instantly, several of the food and beverages stored inside fell out through the glass. A can of Coca Cola sprayed out and smacked one zombie in the forehead, knocking him in the ground.

"Run!" Bill shouted. Quickly, Bill and Jill grabbed everything they could from the smashed vending machine and dashed off, leaving the zombies lying on the ground, covered in coke drinks. A final can dropped out and landed on one of the zombies' tenders. The zombie let out a high-pitched squeal, then fell unconscious.

* * *

Yellowjacket sat on the bed, curled into a ball, rocking back and forth as she waited for Bill and Jill to return. She sighed, feeling a sense of boredom that she had felt for nearly a year now.

Her interest was spiked when the door opened and Bill and Jill came in, looking rather frazzled and out of breath. Jill was leaning on the wall, and Bill was sweating.

"Zombies... really fast..." Bill said as he struggled to catch his breath. Yellowjacket shrugged and turned away dejectedly.

Suddenly, a bag of chips landed on the bed, and Yellowjacket's eyes widened in surprise. She stared at the bag, then at Bill.

"Don't ask," Bill said. "Just eat. We're, uh, going." Without another word, the two left the room.

Yellowjacket carefully took the bag, stared at it, then looked up at the door. After a silence, she ripped the top of the bag off and stuffed her face full of chips.

She'd only now remembered how good they tasted.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	12. Broccoli

_Korrasami 88: Says the guy who made Riley and Meg lesbians._

 _Drunken Hamster: I'm... going to ignore this one._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: I have no response._

 _I am a burglar: Try something._

 _Satsui no Hado Ryu: No, really?_

 _Creamy Buttercap: Here, have a snickers._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Yummy._

 _Antha1: She's redeeming herself... And that's the only answer you'll get._

 _GANGSTA: Moving on._

 _The Batista: What does WWE have to do with any of this?_

* * *

Sawbones, Ghoul and Noose sat at the front of Yellowjacket's house, waiting for their young comrade to show up. Ever since the trio had recovered after being knocked unconscious by the Andersens, they had resolved to stay at Yellowjacket's house until she showed up, and there they had waited.

Zombies, luckily for them, don't get bored nearly as fast as uninfected humans do. However, despite this, after waiting for nearly a day for their child sidekick to arrive and reunite with them, it occurred to one of them that sitting and waiting for Yellowjacket to show up wouldn't do them much good.

"Hey guys," Noose said, sparking the attention of the other two. "You think... Yellowjacket ain't showing up?"

Sawbones and Ghoul growled at Noose, causing him to flinch and shuffle farther away from them. During the last few weeks, he'd grown more wary of both of them. He at least had some trust in Ghoul and knew she was only acting out because Yellowjacket was gone, but he wasn't so sure of Sawbones. The two mainly stuck around with him out of fear.

"This is her home," Sawbones reminded, putting an effort into every word. He didn't talk much, even before he was infected. He continued, saying, "She will return."

"What if she's dead-dead?" Noose pointed out. "The Freaks were seen with her last, and killing us is what they do."

There was a moment of silence as the other two considered the possibilities of Yellowjacket being dead. Eventually Ghoul jabbed her fist into Noose's shoulder and snapped, "You're braindead!"

Despite this, even she was wondering if it was true that Yellowjacket was dead. Sawbones simply shrugged.

"It'd be merciful just to kill her," He pointed out. "If she's alive, they most certainly are putting her through the worst torments."

Sawbones didn't remember much of his past, but he did remember that there had been a lot of suffering in it. Sometimes he experienced it, sometimes he dished it out. But he knew that they were not pleasant memories.

"Hopefully, her pain is over," He said to try and reassure the other two. "For if she is alive, who knows the suffering she is being put through?"

* * *

"No! Please no! You mustn't do this to me! Oh, please, not that!"

"It's for your own good, Riley!"

"No, you can't. You can't!"

"If you won't do it, I will!"

"Don't force this on me!"

"You... Have... To... Eat the broccoli!"

"I won-" Riley started but was cut off by Jill jamming the broccoli into her mouth, which had been forced open by Bill. Riley started gagging as Bill forced her to open and close her mouth to munch on it.

"Almost... Done..." Jill reassured both Riley and Bill as the broccoli was shoved into her mouth. Riley swallowed against her will, and finally, Bill released her. Riley collapsed on the ground, gagging, and scrambled into the bathroom. Bill and Jill heard the sound of the sink water being turned on, followed by the sounds of Riley gurgling the water in her mouth.

"I thought you told me being a zombie would get rid of her affliction to broccoli," Bill mentioned to Jill as the two stared off in the direction Riley had ran in.

"Well, we had to find something for her to eat that was healthy besides brains," Jill pointed out. "It couldn't have hurt to try."

The two then heard Riley screaming and wailing from inside the bathroom. Then, they heard the sound of Riley coughing and gagging more violently than usual. Immediately feeling concern, the two slowly walked towards the open door.

"Uh, Riley?" Bill asked as he peeked into the room. "Are you... Alright?"

The two then saw Riley leaning over the bathroom tub, gagging and choking. With the way she was choking, the two could tell she wasn't feeling alright. Their fears were confirmed when she turned to look at them, and they saw her face was turning blue, and there was drool lining her mouth.

"Oh... no," Bill said. Before Jill could saw anything, Bill grabbed her and dove out of the way of the door. The two rolled around on the floor and came to a stop. Only seconds afterwards, the sound of Riley puking filled their ears, followed by green goo being squirted out of the room.

"...I think we should give her a minute," Jill said, and Bill could do nothing but nod. They heard Riley gag again, and they looked away in revulsion.

* * *

Bill and Jill didn't see Riley again for the rest of the day. They waited for hours for Riley to leave the bathroom, but she didn't. The choking and gagging eventually stopped, but they saw no signs of her, and they certainly didn't want to enter the bathroom itself.

After hours of waiting amounted to nothing, the two simply fell asleep in Riley's bed. The two lay snuggled together, and soon, their snoring filled the apartment.

About a half hour after they had fallen asleep, Riley finally left the bathroom. She slowly approached the bed, and looked down at the two from the side of the bed. She watched them, unmoving, not even blinking.

* * *

 ** _(In Riley's Mind)_**

"I can't believe they fed us broccoli," Pixie stated disgustedly, nearly puking from the memory. "I thought they said they loved us."

"Yellowjacket could've died from that!" Nerve pointed out, speaking in terror. "If she died, we'd die, and we'd never get our memories back!"

"Oh, that does it!" Brick said, slamming his fist into his open palm. "I saw we eat them now!"

At that point, Star jumped up and said, "Everyone, calm down!" Instantly, all the emotions stopped talking and looked up to Star.

"Now, it was really uncalled for that they made us eat broccoli, I'll admit that," Star told the other emotions. "But... if we eat them now, then we won't be able to unlock our memories, and we'll be stuck in this... state for the rest of our lives. Now, do any of you want that?"

"...I want to go home," Teardrop confessed miserably.

"We'll go home after we get our memories back," Star reassured. "But until that happens, we have to play it cool. So, no complaining for the rest of the night."

The emotions began mumbling to themselves as they left to go to sleep. The moment they were gone, Star ran to the memory tray and activated it, allowing the core memories to pop up. She stared at the one which had glowed before, and saw that it was still glowing, but only ever so slightly. It hadn't gone out, though.

Star sighed in relief, then left to go to sleep.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	13. Truckers

_Gonna ignore the first four reviews._

 _Js: Yeah, it seems even the undead can't overcome their affliction to the dreaded broccoli._

 _Creamy Buttercrap: That is all._

 _Korrasami 88: Because Riley hates broccoli. What makes you think zombie Riley would be any different?_

 _Drunken Hamster: Yeah, sure thing._

 _Satsui no Hado Ryu: Thanks._

 _Antha1: Oh, they don't need brains. They just need a plot._

 _Wealthy man: I think so._

 _I am a burglar: Thanks. One could learn a lot from giving._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Don't be a complainer._

* * *

Bill and Jill awoke with a start as the sun started to shown on the other side of the city. Breathing heavily, they turned around to see Riley, snuggled on the floor.

"Oh," Jill whispered in relief. "For a moment, I thought she was gone."

Bill was sweating. "I had a dream entailing just that," He said, ruffling his hair. "I wonder what might happen if the rest of the crew find out that we have our daughter here, except she's a zombie?"

"They will not find out," Jill reassured him, getting out of bed. "Besides, Riley's thirteen now. What could possibly happen?"

Bill walked to the window and pointed to the scores of zombies wandering on the road. "They could happen," He said. "What will they do to our daughter if they find out she's travelling with... with normal people?!"

"We've dealt with them for nearly a year," Jill reassured her husband again. "Those zombies are all the same. They're, well, easy to fool. Riley's different, though. Trust me, I doubt we will find any walkers that would actually be a concern to us."

Bill forced a smile. "Thanks, honey," He said, and planted a kiss on her cheek.

* * *

On one side of the city, three young Freaks were driving their old truck through the woods, blasting Hall of Fame's 'Rock and Roll' in their music box. They chugged down whiskey and beer, laughing in a drunken stupor and relishing what it was like to drive past the speed limit without any cops to stop them.

"Hey, look, a deer," One of them said, pointing out the open window. Instantly, the other pulled out a double-barreled shotgun and fired off into the woods. However, his poor aiming only scared it off.

"Wow!" The third shouted, his eyes rolling in his head. The man with the gun continued to fire his gun off in random directions, Rock and Roll drowning out the laughing and swearing coming from the three young men.

 _"Zuul."_

"Hahahaha... did anyone hear that?!"

"Naw, man, you're still so freaking high!"

 _"Zuul!"_

A massive, dark figure suddenly dove out the bushes on the road, in clear view of the truck drivers. Even in their drunken stupor, they still saw the zombie, its twisted features and ugly grimaces clearly apparent from the truck's blinding headlights.

"Aw, shi-"

The man on the steering wheel spun it around with enough force to tear it off, and the truck went soaring off the road. It flipped through the air, gliding in the wind, and crashed onto the road. It tumbled around, mashing and busting the truck, and finally crashed into a tree. By now, the truck looked like a giant, busted soda can.

Inside the busted soda can that once was a truck, the three men lay inside, covered in bruises, each of them letting out little whines of pain.

"Au... auuuuuuu."

Slowly, several dark figures crept out of the darkness, bent and distorted. Their wet hands, dripping with mud, clambered onto the upturned truck, their sharp claws digging into the metal. Their yellow, bloodshot eyes trailed around the truck, searching for its inhabitants.

Inside the truck, the men went as quiet as the hollow winds as they heard the sound of heavy figures climbing onto the truck. They heard low, raspy breathing, and drool dribbled inside the truck.

There was a shout of anguish, followed by the door of the truck being torn open with ease. The men heard the door crash onto the ground with a resounding _thunk!_ , and they knew they there time was up.

For an indiscernible amount of time, there was silence. The only sound was that of rain pouring down onto the truck. One man, the one who had been on the wheel, felt droplets of the rain drip onto his face and body, soaking him.

Then, there was a low growl, and the men's eyes widened into saucers as they saw a long, bony, gray arm clamber through the open door of the truck. It felt through the vehicle, searching for prey. The men slunk deeper into the trunk to avoid its grasp.

Sweat poured down one man's head when the clawed tip of the arm rested onto his chest. The dented nails, reminiscent of a crab's pincers, dug into the man's body slowly, as if to confirm that it was indeed toughing the flesh of the living. The man shut his eyes and slowly began to silently pray, begging that he would be spared from the cold hands of Death.

Then, the arm slunk out of the truck. The man's eyes snapped open as he felt the pincers leave his flesh. His eyes darted about, shocked that he wasn't being torn into by the claws of the undead.

They waited for the creatures to return. A minute passed. Then another. Still, there was no sign of the monsters in the woods. The trio looked at each other, silently wondering if they had been giving another chance, and spared from death.

Then, the cold word whisped through the air.

 _"Zuul."_

The men's skin paled as they recognized the voice, and there was no mistaking that it was not their imaginations. And worse, it was not coming outside of the truck.

It was coming from right behind the man with the bottle of whiskey.

The massive creature then rose from behind the man, its mouth twisted into a long, demented grin.

 _"Zuul... mother... trucker."_

* * *

An hour later, the four zombies lay on top of the truck. They were still worn out after performing their regular routine on the most recent band of Freaks that had the misfortune of stumbling into their territory.

One was a young woman, around twenty. Her white hair was the same shade as her skin, which felt as hard as a rock. Lying next to her were two fraternal twins, one male and the other female, both of them dressed all in black. Lying next to the truck, a rather portly zombie with red hair lay with two of the Freaks trapped in his giant arms.

Two of the Freaks were covered in bite and scratch wounds that the zombies had dealt to them. Their skin was beginning to turn pale, and their veins turning blue. The Freak at the driver's seat lay crushed inside the truck, covered in bruises and unconscious, a broken whiskey bottle lying on his chest.

"You know, I've never seen a Freak scream in such a high-pitched voice," The platinum blonde zombie mentioned to the three others. They began to chuckle in raspy voices, their lips pealed back to expose their fangs.

"Mary totally fooled them," The male twin mentioned, referring to his sister. "The way she made them think we left after prodding in their dump can."

"Rob totally got them to scatter with the whole 'Zuul' thing!" The female twin noted about the red-headed zombie. "I don't even know where he got it from. I don't really remember anything about our past, really!"

"Yeah," All four zombies said, and they fell into silence. After some time passed, the blonde zombie dropped onto the ground and said, "Well, let's find more Freaks to fright!"

The four zombies then darted towards the city, leaving the three Freaks inside the utterly destroyed truck.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	14. Memories

_mro123321: Yeah, I drew a comic book about zombie kids once and decided to incorporate elements of that comic into my story._

 _Drunken Hamster: Yeah, here's the next chapter for you._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: You cannot escape from ZUUL!_

 _Antha1: Zombie-busters._

 _TheDisneyFan365, Satsui no Hado Ryu, and Korrasami 88: You'll find out eventually._

 _Js:... Re-read that chapter. They DID infect them._

 _BH6JediPadawan: Uh, yeah, I don't appreciate you insulting my reviewers. Just a tip._

 _I am a burglar: Whatever floats your boat._

* * *

Jill used a blanket to wipe Riley's mouth, which was still covered with vomit from last night's broccoli-induced incident. Riley briefly tore away from the blanket and started coughing a bit, before turning back to Jill.

Bill leaned in on Jill. "She seems a little more peace-able now, don't you think?" He whispered into her ear, careful for Riley not to hear. Jill nodded, and Riley raised an eyebrow in confusion.

Bill turned to the door. "We should probably be going to get more supplies," He said with a sigh. Riley stared at the two, and tugged on Bill's arm.

Bill turned to Riley. "We're going out," He said, motioning to the door and hoping she understood. Riley blinked in confusion, and wandered to the window and looked outside. Bill and Jill followed, and saw that the streets were clear for the time being.

"Let's go, Jill, now!" Bill said, and the two took off out the room, grabbing a gun for protection. In their rush, they forgot to close the door.

Riley wandered towards the door and watched them leave.

She blinked, and was confused when she felt an urge to follow them.

* * *

 _ **(In Yellowjacket's Mind)**_

"Guys, we have to save them," Star said bluntly as she looked through Yellowjacket's eyes.

"WHAT?!" The other four emotions shouted in protest. They immediately ran up to Joy, babbling their frustrations and disagreements with her.

"They took us away from Ghoul and Noose and Sawbones!" Brick reminded, his head aflame.

"They tied us to a bed," Nerve pointed out, jumping about in terror.

"They... made us... eat... BROCCOLI!" Pixie shouted out, her face beginning to turn purple from the memory. The other emotions screamed in horror at the memory. As they did, Star looked and saw multiple bright blue, red, green, and purple memory orbs form.

"Shut it, guys!" She snapped at them as she stared. Pointing at the memories, she said, "Look!"

The other emotions turned and saw the memories, and were nearly blinded by the bright memory orbs. They hadn't seen the orbs so bright in around a year, and they'd forgotten what it looked like.

Joy then ran and looked out the window. Observing Long-Term Memory, she noticed the area starting to grow brighter and begin functioning again. The emotions followed suit, and looked outside.

"Wow..." Joy whispered in awe. She didn't notice it, but she herself was starting to glow brighter as well. The other emotions were glued to the window as well, gazing in shock.

Pulling away from the window, Joy said, "That's why we need to save them!"

The other emotions turned to face Joy as she continued. "I told you; if we stayed with them, they would unlock our memories, and we'd know who Yellowjacket was in the past," She explained to them. "If we don't protect them, they won't be able to unlock the rest of our memories. Got it?"

"...Okay," The other emotions mumbled, but Pixie felt the urge to protest.

"What are we supposed to do?" She asked. "Go up against that crowd and say, 'Hey, don't eat those Freaks.'?"

"No..." Joy said. "I have a better idea. Follow me!"

* * *

Yellowjacket knew she had to follow the two. She didn't trust them fully at the moment, but she still needed to protect them from harm. She knew that the only way to unlock her past was for them to be around to do it for her.

Straightening up and gathering her courage, Yellowjacket dashed through the door.

* * *

Bill and Jill wandered the streets, searching for some place that had food or some other supplies to contend their daughter. Stopping at a Wal-Mart, Jill said, "That looks promising."

Instantly, Bill grabbed a flower pot and smashed it through the sliding door, allowing them entrance inside. Blades of glass went flying in all directions.

"Bill!" Jill shouted, gripping her face in horror. Bill turned to her, asking, "What?!"

Immediately, shrieks and growls started erupting from down the street. Bill, realizing that the smashed glass had attracted the attention of the zombies, ushered his wife inside the market.

"Crap, crap, crap..." Bill said as he began shoving random items into his bag. Jill grabbed a few movies from the film section, and Bill stared at her in disbelief.

"What?" She asked. "We need some entertainment."

Bill rolled his eyes, and finished grabbing some food and weapons off the table.

"Finally, we can go and bring these things to Riley," He said with a triumphant smile.

"What about the group?" Jill asked.

"What _about_ them?" Bill said contemptibly. The two turned to leave, and stopped when they saw that the exit to the Wal-Mart was blocked by a group of zombies. They hadn't seen the two, however, and wandered around the broken door.

"Oh boy..." Bill said. He saw that a few more zombies were arriving, and one of them caught a glimpse of the two. It growled out, alerting the other zombies, who stared at them.

Holding up his gun, Bill said, "Looks like I have no choice."

Before he could fire, the sound of sobbing caught the ears of the zombies, as well as the Andersens. The zombies turned to the source of the crying, forgetting about the Andersens. Curiously, they wandered towards the sobbing, leaving Bill and Jill.

"What was that about?" Bill asked, confused.

"Does it matter?" Jill asked. "Let's go!"

With that, the two took off down the streets, leaving the zombies to continue wandering towards the crying. The zombies located the crying to behind a garbage can. One of them smashed the can aside, and they looked down to see a little girl, about thirteen, curled in a ball on the ground, crying to herself.

She looked up at them, and they stared down, confused and somewhat disappointed. The zombies had learned to connect a girl crying with Freaks being around.

The girl stared at them for a moment, then surprised them by hissing, causing them to back up. Then, in an instant, she sprinted down the street at a fast pace, vanishing into a building.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	15. Visions

_Okay, first of all, I want to make something clear here. I did not intentionally switch from 'Star' to 'Joy'. That was a slip-up in my writing. However, if you do you want to think of it as Star remembering herself, well, you can consider it an unintentional "fridge brilliance" if you will._

 _Drunken Hamster: In the zombie POV, she's known as Yellowjacket. In human POV, she's called Riley._

 _Tseung: Read the above note._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: The girl crying was Yellowjacket._

 _Js: Yes, it was Riley/Yellowjacket._

 _Korrasami 88: Once again, read the above note._

 _Antha1: Heh, heh, good rhyme. The zombies go to Yellowjacket because when a "screamer" cries, it usually means she sees Freaks in the area and is luring them over to her._

 _I am a burglar: Yeah, you do that._

* * *

When Bill and Jill returned to the apartment, they were dismayed when they saw it empty, with no sign that Riley was there. Bill dropped his bags on the floor in shock, and Jill gasped and rushed to where she had last seen her beloved daughter.

"Riley?!" She cried out in horror. "Where are you?!"

Bill searched the bathroom, and returned, his face pale. "Oh gosh, do you think she ran off when we left?" Bill asked, sweat pouring from his forehead.

"She probably got scared that we were leaving," Jill said guiltily, breaking down on the floor. "How could we abandon her like that, again?! What kind of a mother am I?"

Jill began to quietly so to herself, and Bill knelt down and wrapped his arms around her, close to tears himself.

The two were too busy sobbing that they didn't notice Riley walked up towards the doorway, relieved at her lucky escape. She saw the two Freaks, huddled close to each other and crying their eyes out, and she spent some time trying to comprehend what was happening before her.

"Uh..."

Bill and Jill didn't hear; not just because they were occupied by crying, but also because they'd grown so use to hearing zombies groan that it barely fazed them. Riley's next tactic was to hesitantly wander towards them, and tap Bill on the shoulder.

Slowly, Bill opened his eyes and looked up to see Riley, standing above him, a confused look on her face. His eyes registered until he recognized her, and then they widened in shock and pure joy. He nudged his wife, who turned to see what he was staring at. Her eyes were blurred by her tears, until she wiped them away and saw Riley standing only a few inches away from her.

Riley tapped her index fingers together, her eyes darting left and right as she continued to wonder what all the fuss was about. She was also confused as to why Bill and Jill were staring at her in awe; hadn't they grown used to seeing her around?

"R-Riley?" Jill asked, her voice brimming with solaced joy.

"Uh... yeah?" Riley said in response, not knowing what else to say. She was still just beginning to learn how to converse with the Freaks, and the way they were acting at the moment certainly wasn't helping matters.

Jill's expression slowly changed; first from sadness, then to surprise, and finally, to excitement.

"Riley!" She shouted, and Riley was taken aback when Jill pulled her into a warm embrace. Riley could barely let out a startled scream as her head was crushed against her mother's bosom. Soon, her father joined the hug.

"Riley, I thought I lost you," Jill said, tears of joy springing from her eyes. She released Riley from the embrace, and kissed her on the cheek, ignoring that she was a zombie.

Riley stumbled backwards a bit, only keeping from falling because Jill was holding her hands.

"What?" Was all she could say at the moment. Jill didn't answer that, but instead said, "Don't ever run off like that again!"

"Where were you, Riley?" Bill asked, concerned.

"I followed you," Riley said, at the same time signing with her hands and arms. "I lured the crowd away. Me."

Bill's eyebrows raised. "You did that?" He asked, turning to stare at the window. Riley nodded, hoping the two were proud of her. Bill turned back to her, a neutral expression his face. He slowly nodded in recognition.

"You scared us half to death, Riley," Bill scolded after a moment of silence. "Never do that again."

Riley's face fell in disappointment. "Oh," Was all she said, before she sullenly wandered into the bathroom and shut the door behind her, leaving her parents alone.

When she was alone and confined to herself, Riley curled up into a fetal position and closed her eyes as she tried to put her mind at ease.

* * *

 _ **(In Yellowjacket's Mind)**_

"Sheesh, what was that about?" Brick asked Star, who shrugged in response. The emotions were crowding around the console, trying to comprehend the best coarse of action.

"They seemed really... worried, I think," Pixie said, her mind deep in thought.

"Why would they be worried about us?" Teardrop asked sullenly. "They're Freaks, remember. They kill us, remember."

Star began to think to herself, ignoring the conversations of the other emotions. As she thought, she noticed a memory glowing. This one wasn't the same memory as before, though.

"That's weird," Star said as she approached the memory orb and picked it up. She started to look closely at it, trying to see the situation in the orb. As she did, the memory starting glowing brighter. So bright, in fact, that it attracted the other emotions to it.

"What the-" Brick whispered as he slowly turned to face the glowing light in the center of the Headquarters.

Star stared closely at the memory, and recognized a few things within it. She saw Yellowjacket, and the two Freaks were there as well. Only this time, they were in a dark forest.

The other emotions huddled around Star, and Nerve said, "Turn it back. We have to see this!"

Star obeyed and replayed the memory back. The other emotions all crowded around it, trying to get a good look at Yellowjacket's past. However, they did not anticipate what happened next.

Suddenly, the orb emitted a blinding flash of light and energy. Star gasped in shock as she felt a burning sting in her eyes, and a force of energy sent her and the other emotions flying backwards, the memory orb dropping onto the ground.

Star crashed onto the floor, clutching her burning eyes. Apparently, the other emotions had felt the same stinging, because they too covered their eyes in agony. Tears started streaming from their eyes, and Brick felt his head start to burn up from anguish.

Amidst the pain, Star unexpectedly started to experience multiple bizarre images. She saw Yellowjacket and the two Freaks running through the damp forest. She barely recognized that the forest was near her house, and she wondered if the Freaks had been to her house at one point.

Before she could comprehend this, she saw more images. She saw Yellowjacket on the ground, writhing in agony. She saw herself from Yellowjacket's point of view, seeing her extend a hand up to the Freaks. She noticed that the Freaks were crying. Then, the Freaks faded from the memory, and Star heard the sounds of inhuman growling encircling her, and she could barely make out several dark creatures in the forest. Then, she saw Yelowjacket's normal hand begin to grow claws, and she could just barely hear Yellowjacket start to emit the same growling. Then, the images faded to black.

Star snapped up, her eyes no longer burning. She looked around as the other emotions recovered as well, all of them breathing heavily. They stared at the memory before them, and quickly backed away from it.

None of them dared to touch it.

* * *

Yellowjacket's eyes snapped open. Her arms and legs snapped up and slammed against the walls and floors, and she started breathing heavily. She felt her shoulders and chest, and she looked around the room. The only sounds she could hear were of her own ragged breathing.

She, too, had experienced the strange visions.

"W-What?" She whispered to herself. A tear streamed down her cheek, from both confusion and sadness.

"What happened to me?" She asked, and she buried her head in her hands.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	16. The Group

_Drunken Hamster: Weirdo by the standards of both humans and zombies... looks like Riley's going through a phase._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: S-s-stop st-t-tuttering._

 _The Batista: Yadda, yadda._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Wasn't it obvious?_

 _I am a burglar: Not even close._

 _Korrasami 88: Well, how else do you think she turned into a zombie?_

 _Antha1: I get it; you're upset that Riley's breaking out of stereotypes. But we have more pressing matters at hand._

* * *

Bill and Jill stood outside of the washroom, wondering what Riley was doing inside. They waited patiently for Riley to open the door, or at least make a sound. Something, so that they knew she was alright.

After an uncertain amount of time passed, Bill lightly tapped on the door and said, "Um, Riley? Are you alright?"

For a few moments, there was no response. Then, the two heart Riley's soft, but somewhat raspy, voice answer with, "I'm okay. Just... leave me alone."

Bill and Jill blinked simultaneously, perplexed by Riley's response. Jill whispered into Bill's ear, "You think we were too hard on her?"

"Yeah, we shouldn't have shouted at her like that," Bill said, deep in thought. A part of him wanted to walk in and try to make it up to his daughter somehow, like he'd usually do. However, it occurred to him that Riley may not want company at the moment.

"I think we should go and see how the others are doing," Bill said to change the subject, as much as it pained him to say so. Checking up on the group was the last thing he wanted, but at the same time, he knew that they were probably going to get suspicious as to why he and his wife were spending long periods of time away from them.

"Ugh," Jill groaned, evidently thinking the same thing. "Let's just get this over with."

With that, the two left.

* * *

Bill and Jill were hoping to see happy faces when they arrived at the apartment. They'd just dodged through dozens of zombies on their way to the apartment, and they wished to see some relief when they arrived.

Alas, they hoped for too much. When they opened the door, they found Sir pacing back and forth, a stony look on his face, his arms crossed behind his back. Some of the others were lounging about at the walls, staring off into space. One man was sitting in his chair, glaring at the two. A woman was clutching her too children, and refused to look in the Andersen's direction.

In moments, the husband and wife sensed more hostility in the room than they had outside with the zombies.

Sir stopped pacing, and he turned to stare at the two, but mainly at Bill.

"Where were you, Mr. Andersen?" Sir asked harshly, his eyes squinted from old age. "We haven't seen you in nearly two days."

Bill tried to keep from swearing; before the whole outbreak began, Bill hardly ever even thought of cursing, especially when his wife was there. He never felt the need to. But ever since he'd met up with Sir and the rest of the group, sticking it to them somehow in the form of his grammar was often on the tip of his tongue.

"We were busy," He said, contempt in his voice. "We, uh, had our own matters to attend to."

"Like what?" One man asked. "What could possibly keep you out there with those monsters for so freaking long?"

Bill didn't respond to that. He certainly wasn't going to tell them that he was currently reunited with his zombified daughter. That was bound to lead to trouble. If they found out, they'd definitely kill Riley. Heck, they may even kill him and his wife.

"It's complicated," Jill said for him.

The group started whispering among themselves. Bill thought he heard one woman whisper, "You think they're selling us out to some other group?"

That definitely wasn't something he wanted the group to think. Quickly, he stated, "You know what, we'll go out and get some more supplies for you all if it will keep you from complaining! Is that alright?"

"Fine," The group said in unison.

Bill groaned and Jill rolled her eyes. The two then stomped out of the room and walked down the hallways, glad to have avoided a more severe confrontation.

"How did we ever get stuck with these lazy bums?" Jill questioned Bill as soon as they were out of earshot from the others. Bill just shrugged his shoulders, trying to recall how he first met them. It had been barely a year ago, but he could hardly remember.

* * *

 _ **(In Bill's Mind)**_

"You know, she's got a point," Disgust said, his arms folded. "This has been the worst year of our lives, and it's definitely not because of the zombies."

"If I hear one more complaint from any of them, I'm going to pop them one in the mouth!" Anger stated, slamming his fist on the control panel. The other emotions backed away slowly. Anger didn't say anything else, though.

For a moment, there was an awkward silence. Then, Fear unexpectedly piped up.

"Why don't we just leave?" He asked.

The other emotions turned to stare at him. "What?" Sadness asked. "What do you mean, leave?"

Fear shrugged, then said, "Well, we have our daughter back. We could just, you know, maybe move out and..."

"Fear!" Anger shouted unexpectedly, aghast at what the purple emotion was suggesting. Fear immediately shrunk down into his seat.

"I cannot believe you would suggest such a thing!" The red emotion shouted. "To abandon those men, women and children to a certain death, just because we don't like them? I mean, sure, they're a little... well, they're total jerks, but to leave them like that would be utterly inhumane!"

Anger waited for the other emotions to back him up. However, we was surprised to see the emotions had somewhat mixed emotions on their faces, looking like they were weighing their options.

"Ahem!" He shouted, and the emotions all said, "Uh, sure."

Anger than turned back to Bill's viewpoint, trying to get the idea out of his head. However, he found it was harder than he thought.

* * *

Yellowjacket slowly opened the door in the bathroom and wandered outside. She wasn't surprised to see that Bill and Jill weren't there. She had overheard the two talking about going to check up on "the group", and just assumed they were taking about the other Freaks.

She pondered to herself what these Freaks were like. Were they like Bill and Jill, or were they different. If she were to go and meet them, how would they react. Would they shoot her. Would Bill and Jill allow that to happen?

She was broken out of her thoughts when she heard a scraping at the door. Assuming Bill and Jill had returned, Yellowjacket burst towards the door, glad to see them again. However, just as she grabbed the doorknob, she heard raspy breathing coming from the other end of the door.

She hesitated for a moment. Whatever was on the other side of the door, it wasn't Bill or Jill. However, she wandered who it was.

After a moment's hesitation, she opened the door.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	17. The Boy

_Drunken Hamster: They're names are Sawbones, Ghoul and Noose. And, spoiler alert, it's not them at the door._

 _Js: You'll find out why in a later chapter. The group isn't THAT big. I'd put it at around a dozen people._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: I don't know who you're talking about._

 _Korrasami 88: It actually isn't. At least, the person isn't._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: It took me a about three seconds to get the pun._

 _Creamy Buttercap: She is going to open that door._

 _The Batista: Indeed I am._

 _I am a burglar: Oh sure, you can crash in Yellowjacket's apartment._

* * *

Yellowjacket pushed the door open, wondering if whoever was on the other end was friendly, or hostile. She knew, from the heavy growling, that it wasn't a Freak; it was a... normal person, she thought. At least, she hoped.

When the door was opened, Yellowjacket stared forward, and her eyes widened just a bit when she saw who was at the door.

It was a boy, around her age. He wore a dark jacket with blue stripes on the sleeves. He had a somewhat long face, and a rather big nose. He had curly black hair, and wore a blue cap on his head. His blue eyes looked rather unfocused, as if he wasn't all there. His mouth hung open a bit, and he was emitting low breathing. He was wearing short jeans, and his shoes stunk. His pale hands were in his pockets.

Yellowjacket stared at the boy, her mouth hanging open in a similar manner to him. Her eyes darted up, then down, then focused on the boy. She wasn't sure what to say.

The boy yawned a bit, then asked, "Come in?"

"...Uuuuh," Yellowjacket said. That was the first thing that came to her mind. She mentally smacked herself; why she was having trouble communicating. She was talking to her own kind.

The boy seemed to take Yellowjacket's vague groaning for a yes, as he casually walked past her and sat down on the bed. Yellowjacket stared at him, then her head spun around to where he had been a few seconds ago. She was confused; she hadn't given him permission to enter her room.

The boy was staring off into space, his face dull. He paid Yellowjacket no attention.

"Who are..." Yellowjacket started, but stopped when the boy didn't respond. He just casually wiped his nose with his sleeve, acting as if she wasn't even there.

Yellowjacket felt the faintest bit of annoyance in her mind, and she made a hissing sound and pointed at the door. The boy turned to face her this time, then said, "Got any food?"

Yellowjacket blinked in confusion. Her head craned over to the bag of food Bill and Jill had brought by not too long ago. The boy, catching her gaze, then walked over to the good, grabbed a candy bar, and ate it. Then, he sat back down.

That was when Yellowjacket started to get angry.

* * *

 _ **(In Yellowjacket's Mind)**_

"Okay, that does it!" Brick said angrily, pointing an accusing finger in the boy's direction. "He has to go!"

"I can't believe he would storm in here like that!" Pixie said, disgusted. "And he ate our food. Who does he think he is?"

Star, on the other hand, was staring curiously at the kid, stroking her chin in thought. She couldn't help but feel like she knew him from somewhere...

The other emotions, however, weren't thinking in complexities. The boy was intruding on their territory, and that would not be tolerated. Brick pulled a lever, signaling for Yellowjacket to advance on the boy.

As Yellowjacket neared him, however, Star began to notice a memory start to glow...

* * *

The door swung open and Yellowjacket exited, dragging the boy behind her, her fist clutching his collar. The boy was roughly dragged across the ground as Yellowjacket angrily stormed down the hallway.

Kicking open the door leading to the stairs, Yellowjacket proceeded down the stairs with the boy in her grasp. The back of the boys head bumped on every step as Yellowjacket pulled him down with her. The boy had no reaction; he was too surprised to react to what was going on.

Soon, Yellowjacket reached the bottom of the stairs and walked over to the door leading to outside of the apartment. She grabbed the doorknob, prepared to chuck the boy out of her domain and onto the streets.

Then, she stopped.

Suddenly, a memory flashed before her eyes. She saw herself skating on a skating rink, the boy by her side, the two laughing and joking with each other. She saw the image for only a few seconds before it faded. As she did, she let go of the boy's collar, and he dropped onto the ground.

Yellowjacket looked down at the boy, and knelt down as he hands clutched his face. Her eyes stared into his as she tried to recognize who he was.

"Who are you?" Yellowjacket asked firmly.

The boy looked up at her, then shrugged.

"They call me Blackjacket."

* * *

Bill and Jill had just finished gathering some medical supplies from the hospital. This time, they had made sure that the hospital didn't have zombies crawling through it before they started gathering things.

"Okay, we got everything, let's go," Jill said as she prepared to leave. Bill was ready to follow, then he stopped. A picture caught his attention.

The picture showed a girl, about ten years old, in a hospital bed. She looked incredibly sickly. Her skin was pale, and her hair was chalk white and looked to be falling out. Her eyes were closed shut.

"Bill, come on!" Jill said. Bill reluctantly diverted his attention from the picture and followed his wife as the exited the hospital. Luckily, the apartment wasn't far from the group's hideout, as well as Yellowjacket's apartment. Zombies briefly started after them, but they couldn't hope to keep up.

For their daughter's sake, the couple decided to make a stop at Riley's apartment before they went to the group.

"I wonder if she's doing well after what happened?" Jill said as they opened the door to the apartment and started walking up the stairs.

"Oh, she's fine, trust me," Bill reassured as they made it to the door. They were about to open the door, but they stopped when they heard chattering coming from inside the room.

"Hey... that doesn't sound like Riley," Jill noted curiously. Bill froze, and his hand tightened around the doorknob.

Had one of the group stumbled upon Riley. His hand gripped the gun in his pocket, just in case he needed to use violence. Taking a deep breath, he swung the door open, and prepared to shoot.

Inside the room, he saw Yellowjacket. But she wasn't alone.

The couple jumped when they saw Yellowjacket and the boy sitting on the bed together.

Yellowjacket turned to face them. "Bill, Jill, meet Blackjacket," She introduced. The boy turned to them, and nodded.

Bill and Jill's mouths hung open in disbelief.

"...What the heck is going on?!" Bill cried.

* * *

 _Read and review. I think it's obvious who the boy is._


	18. Blackjacket

_Okay, yeah guys, it's Jordan. I decided this fic needed some connections with the film itself._

 _Drunken Hamster: Well, here's the new chapter for you._

 _Korrasami 88: I was going to call him Curly (his curly hair), but then again, lots of people have Curly hair so it's not much of a defining characteristic._

 _Js: Yeah, I wanted to add something else to the plot to keep it going until it we get to the second and third acts, where things start to pick up more._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Refer to my Korrasami response._

 _I am a burglar: No, don't take away my piece of foreshadowing!_

 _Antha1: Ghoul isn't old enough to be Blackjacket's mother. I picture her as in her mid-to-ate twenties, and Blackjacket is Yellowjacket's age (thirteen)._

 _Anonymous Guy: Count yourself as 100% right._

* * *

"What the heck is going on?!"

Yellowjacket was surprised to see Blackjacket's expression change for probably the first time: his eyes snapped open at the sudden change in volume as a result of Bill's shouting. His mouth was hanging open the same as it always was, though.

It was then that he noticed Bill and Jill in the room, and his expression shifted into utter shock as he turned to face Yellowjacket.

"Those are Freaks," He whispered into her ear. Yellowjacket nodded, for a moment forgetting that the Freaks he was referring to were Bill and Jill. When she regained her senses, she quickly shushed into his ear, signaling for him to regain quiet, and not to move.

Bill and Jill were frozen in place, unsure of what course of action to take. Their eyes were on Blackjacket, questions circling through their minds. How had the zombie gotten in here, and what was it planning to do to Riley?

Blackjacket returned the stare. As their eyes locked, Bill recognized him.

"Is that... what was his name again?" Bill asked. Jill shrugged, not knowing herself. Hoping to accelerate things a bit, Jill moved to the side, cautious to avoid provoking the new arrival into violence. Slowly, she set down the medical supplies on the chair.

Blackjacket followed her gaze, and his eyes wandered onto the supplies. Bill watched as the zombie stared at his wife, and his hand holding the gun quivered. The movement caused Blackjacket's attention to turn to him. He saw the gun.

Bill froze in place, as did Yellowjacket and Jill. Zombie or not, Bill did not want to have to shoot the kid, but he wondered if it would have to come to this.

Bill saw Yellowjacket, and noticed that she was signing to him. She made a lowering hands motion, and he could tell she was telling him to lower his gun. Hoping to avoid any shedding of blood, Bill conceded. As slowly as possible, he put the gun back into his pocket.

At that point, Yellowjacket got off the bed and wandered into the middle of the room. Her eyes looked nervous, not like the dull and lifeless eyes of most of the zombies the couple had seen over the months.

Yellowjacket turned to Blackjacket, and started talking, signing with her arms as she did.

"They..." She said, tipping her head at Bill and Jill. "With me." As she did this, she pointed at herself.

Blackjacket looked confused; he seemed to know what Yellowjacket was saying, he just didn't know why she was saying this. He turned to stare at the two, and his eyes locked with Bill's.

Bill looked into his eyes, and he knew who he was. But he also knew that he wasn't quite the kid he remembered.

* * *

The next several minutes were awkward. Yellowjacket shooed Bill and Jill out of the room, apparently to talk with the new zombie. The couple left the door half-open so they could see what was happening.

Yellowjacket was standing up, but Blackjacket remained on the bed, not moving.

"You... with them?" He asked for confirmation from the zombie girl. His tone was the same as before, but Yellowjacket could sense some genuine confusion. Hoping to keep things as docile as possible, Yellowjacket nodded, and smiled as added reassurement.

Blackjacket's expression changed to a confused one, and he lifted his shoulders up, then dropped them to express his bafflement. Yellowjacket tapped her index fingers together, waiting for a proper response.

"Why?" Blackjacket asked. "They're Freaks."

Yellowjacket lifted her arm and pointed at her head. "My... past," She said, pausing as she tried to find the right words to use. "They... they can help me... find it."

Blackjacket still didn't seem to understand. Losing patience, Yellowjacket said, "You can eat anything here except them!" She pointed at the door. Blackjacket seemed uncomfortable, but he didn't seem to argue.

* * *

Outside the door, Bill and Jill were listening in on the conversation.

"There's a zombie boy in my apartment," Bill was telling his wife. "Why is there a zombie boy in my apartment?"

"Maybe he's nice," Jill said optimistically. The two heard breathing, and they turned to see Blackjacket standing at the entrance of the door. The two screamed out in surprise, and Bill jumped into his wife's arms.

Yellowjacket approached the shaking couple and stood next to Blackjacket. Pointing at the zombie boy, Yellowjacket said, "I... remember him. He's staying here for now."

"What?!" Bill and Jill cried out in protest. A stern look from Yellowjacket caused them hush. Blackjacket stared at the two Freaks; he bared his teeth a bit at them, clearly uncomfortable with having to share a room with them. Almost immediately, Yellowjacket whirled upon him and violently snapped at his ear, growling and hissing at him to scare him into behaving.

Blackjacket seemed to understand what this hostile display meant.

 _I will hurt you if you harm them. As long as you're here, I will not tolerate any violence._

Yellowjacket turned to stare at Bill and Bill, her mouth open to show her fangs. The two remained silent, and pressed against the wall. Yellowjacket turned and growled at Blackjacket one more time, before vanishing back into the room.

Bill and Jill turned to stare at Blackjacket, who returned the stare. As much as they wished it weren't so, the Freaks and the zombie would have to tolerate each other's presence for the time being.

* * *

Sawbones, Ghoul and Noose spied on a group of Freaks from in the branches of a thicket of trees. Ghoul and Noose stay hidden in a higher section of the tree, while Sawbones remained farther away, closer to the Freaks they were planning to ambush.

Ghoul and Noose watched Sawbones. Even though they had spent a lot of time with him, they rarely ever spoke to him, and they admittedly didn't know him much. Except for when they were hunting the Freaks, the two preferred to keep a good distance away from them.

"Any sign of her?" Noose asked, referring to Yellowjacket. Ghoul hissed at him, not wanting him to give away their position. Noose shrunk down among her threatening display, whimpering. Sawbones' head craned around to stare at the two, and they quieted down. Sawbones continued to stare at them for the time being, then shifted his view back to the Freaks.

Sawbones raised an arm over his head, a butcher knife in his fist. He locked onto his target, and his breathing slowed to a stop. He focused on the Freak he planned to strike.

Then, with deadly precision, he hurled the knife. The blade cut through the air like a projectile, and it delved into the flesh of the Freak, right below his shoulder blade.

Sawbones savored the scream that followed. In an instant, the swarm arrived, having heard the shout of anguish, and the Freaks were overtaken in an instant. Sawbones, Ghoul and Noose watched from above.

They wondered what Yellowjacket would think if she were here to watch them.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	19. Dinner

_Drunken Hamster: Well, Bill and Jill are the only Freaks she's really attached to at the moment._

 _Anonymous Guy: Isn't it obvious where that was taken from?_

 _Korrasami 88: Here's the response!_

 _Antha1: Yeah, Yellowjacket would never forgive Bill if he did that. As for the three zombies, I kind of wanted to get back to them since I didn't want people to forget about them._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: If you can what?_

 _I am a burglar: Try something._

 _Donovan Black: Moving on..._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar and Creamy Buttercap: Okay, sorry if this isn't the case: are you two the same person? I mean, you seem to review at around the same time as each other quite a bit._

 _The Batista: I have no idea what you mean._

* * *

Never in Bill or Jill's wildest dreams did they think they'd one day find themselves having dinner with two zombies.

Bill, Jill, Yellowjacket and Blackjacket sat at a dinner table in a lower section of the apartment. However, the only one eating was Yellowjacket.

Bill sat, his arm folded across his chest and a stony glare in his eyes as he kept his stare on Blackjacket, who sat absentmindedly on the opposite side of the edge of the table. He was staring off into space, as usual. The only movement was when he raised his arm to scratch at the back of his head. Bill narrowed his eyes at him.

Jill sat on the other side of the table, parallel with Yellowjacket, awkwardly tapping the table with her fingers. Her eyes shifted from each of the three other people at the table.

Yellowjacket was munching away at her plate of roasted meat. Bill and Jill had figured that animal meat would be a satisfying substitute to human meat for a zombie. Apparently, they were correct, as Yellowjacket was tearing away at it joyously. She'd jam her fist into it, tear a scrap of meat off, shoving it into her mouth vigorously, before repeating the process again. She seemed to be oblivious to the obvious hostility being omitted between her parents and the zombie boy sitting a few feet away from her.

Bill and Jill were almost envious at their daughter's joy that they weren't sharing at the moment. The only thing on their mind was why were they having dinner with two zombies?

Whatever they were to think of it, one thing that was for certain was that it was surprisingly uneventful. Jill had to whistle just to have some sense of entertainment. Blackjacket flicked his nose briefly. Bill sighed.

The silence was briefly disrupted when the three heard the sound of Yellowjacket gagging. They turned to her to see the blonde zombie, her head thrown back as she started violently coughing and choking. Before either of the two could do anything, Yellowjacket's head whipped forward as she let out one final cough, and a rather large bone was ejected from her throat and clattered onto the floor, covered in drool.

Bill and Jill stared at the bone, then cringed. They then turned to Yellowjacket, and were surprised to see that she was totally recovered from the ordeal, and was back to ravaging the chicken on her plate. However, she had practically finished it. With a pout, Yellowjacket smacked the plate off the table and into a nearby wall, then suddenly reached forward, grabbed Bill's steak, and pulled it towards her.

"Hey, Riley, that's my one decent meal-" Bill started, but was cut off when Yellowjacket unexpectedly peeled her lips back and hissed at him before proceeding to rip at his steak. Bill opened his mouth to protest, but quickly shut it and continued to fold his arms.

"So, what's your name?" Blackjacket asked Yellowjacket. The girl turned to him, a large piece of steak hanging from her mouth. The steak dropped from her mouth as she said, "Yellowjacket."

Bill and Jill sighed, somewhat frustrated that she was still using that name rather than her real one.

Blackjacket blinked in confusion. "What yellow jacket?" He asked.

"Hm?" Yellowjacket responded in confusion, then she looked down at what she was wearing, and her eyes widened in shock as she realized that she wasn't wearing her trademark yellow jacket. It was only now that she realized that she was dressed in a completely different attire. She looked to Bill and Jill for explanations.

"Well, we kind of... took it off... when we gave you a bath for the first time," Jill admitted. Yellowjacket shut her eyes for a second, and when she opened them, they had a clear look of confusion.

"Is that why I smell funny?" She asked, shrinking down a bit.

"You smell normal," Bill said in an attempt to comfort her.

"I smell like a Freak," She said. She then got up and bitterly stormed out of the room, shutting the door behind her. Bill and Jill stared at the door for a few moments, then turned back to stare at Blackjacket, who shrugged. Bill took the opportunity to reach for his steak.

Suddenly, the door opened again and Yellowjacket walked back inside.

"I'm taking this," She said, snatched up the steak, then quickly exited the room.

"...Aw," Bill said sullenly.

* * *

 _ **(In Bill's Mind)**_

"I still don't know why there's a zombie boy in my apartment," Anger said, rubbing his temple in frustration.

Hoping to lighten the situation, Joy pointed out, "But it's not just any zombie boy. It's. . . uh, what was his name again?"

"Riley said it was Blackjacket," Sadness recalled. Snapping his fingers, Joy said, "Yeah, we'll call him that."

"Oh great, just what we need," Disgust said sarcastically. "A teenage boy in the house."

Joy shrugged. "Well, we can't just kick him out," He mumbled out. "Riley says she remembers him. Maybe, if she remembers him, and then remembers us, she'll remember that we're her parents, and everything will go back to normal!"

The every other emotions turned to stare at him in disbelief.

". . . Seriously?" Anger said, agitated.

Joy shrunk down under the stairs.

"It was just a thought," He said, shrugging.


	20. Bath

_Korrasami 88: So she loves Jordan, then steak?_

 _Al Drin Hoshizora:... Well that was rude._

 _I am a burglar: Says the burglar._

 _Drunken Hamster: Anger's more bewildered by him saying that everything will go back to being normal... in a zombie apocalypse._

 _Creamy Buttercap: No need to be a dick._

 _Batista: Yeah, yeah, yeah._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Hey... Creamy didn't kill Rancis' brother. He survived in Nightmares, remember?_

 _Candlehead: Has everyone in Sugar Rush gained a fanfiction account?_

 _Antha1: I do plan to become a filmmaker when I grow up. Just need to survive high school._

 _GANGSTA: Hey, I will not tolerate you insulting the other reviewers._

 _The Thing from Another World: I sense sarcasm._

* * *

The following day, Bill and Jill were sent out to search for any more survivors. This time, however, much to Bill's joy, it was decided that a couple of men would be joining the two as they searched the city.

"Finally," He had said, sounding more relieved than ever before, as the group set off into the city, avoiding the zombies as they went.

Yellowjacket had watched them go, and had seen the other Freaks with them. She watched from the open window in the apartment, out of sight from them, as they left into the streets, illuminated by the morning sun.

Yellowjacket's nails bit into the window walls as her suspicions were confirmed. There were more Freaks living near Bill and Jill. And that meant that they must have guns with them as well.

* * *

 _ **(In Yellowjacket's Mind)**_

"This is bad. . . so very, very bad," Nerve said as he watched through Yellowjacket's POV. The other emotions were huddled around him, except for Star, who was staring at the memory orbs.

"So, how many days until they find us?" Pixie asked. "Five? A week? A month?"

"They won't find us," Star said, still staring at the memory orbs and noticing how some were starting to glow. "Bill and Jill have us hidden, remember."

"Can they keep us hidden forever, though?" Teardrop inquired. "What if they keep us isolated from the rest of society forever?" The other emotions gasped at the thought.

"That won't happen," Brick reassured the other emotions. "We have Blackjacket with us."

The emotions turned Yellowjacket around to face Blackjacket, who was lying on the bed, snoring loudly. Turning back to the window, Pixie said, "What will happen when they find us."

"'If' they find us," Star said, finally turning to face the emotions. "If that happens, we go the old route and turn them into one of us."

"I don't think Bill and Jill will be very happy," Teardrop said. The other emotions grumbled in bitter agreement. Star, hoping to lighten the mood a bit, said, "Why don't we think things over in the shower."

The other emotions turned to stare at her.

"What?"

* * *

Riley didn't know why she had felt a compulsion to take a shower. She found it odd how, just the day before, she had expressed contempt towards Bill and Jill for giving her a bath, and yet now she herself was doing it.

Her clothes were lying on the floor next to the tub. Riley turned the bathtub's water on, and she lay in a fetal position as she was dowsed by cold water. She let the tub fill with water until it was up to her head, then she turned it off.

For some time, Riley sat in the tub. She didn't feel the sickly cold water biting into her skin. In the back of her memory, she thought she could remember what it was like to be in this situation.

After a few minutes passed, Riley felt ennui get the best of her, and she slapped her hand into the water in an attempt to ease her boredom. A small wave of water was splashed into her face.

As the water dripped down her nose, Riley couldn't help but feel a memory enter her head.

 _"Come back here, you little monkey!"_

Riley saw herself; only, she was much smaller. She figured she was seeing into her past, when she was an infant, she presumed. She looked happy and cheerful. She also saw a younger Bill, chasing after her.

For a moment, she wondered if this had truly been her past as it was in the present. Had Bill and Jill always been pursuing her, and her trying to escape them, even back then? However, as the memory played in her head, she didn't feel fear, or anger in the memory. She felt happiness and joy.

 _"Oh, you're so cute,"_ She heard Bill say.

Did she look cute now? She doubted it.

However, as the memory played in her mind, she felt a sudden urge in her body. She started to wave her arms in the water, creating a peaceful movement in them. She picked up the pace, and the water started to become wild. Waves of water were thrown onto Riley and out of the tub.

Riley splashed herself with the water, and started to get up. She wished to relive that memory somehow, as best she could.

Splashing the water around, Riley started to hop in the tub in a childish excitement, laughing innocently. She slipped and fell out of the tub, but she got up and started to run around in the small washroom.

She knocked over toothbrushes and soap as she started to lose control over herself as she felt the memory in her mind grow in power. She slid on the water, and she landed on the tub. She got up, still laughing.

Just then, the door opened, and Blackjacket stepped in, eyes drowsy.

Riley stopped as Blackjacket noticed her. The two stared at each other awkwardly, neither of them moving.

"...Uuh," Both of them said in unison.

* * *

A few minutes later, Yellowjacket sat in the chair with her clothes on. She hadn't spoken to Blackjacket since he had opened the door and seen what she had been doing inside.

Blackjacket was staring at a guitar lying in the corner of the wall as he sat on the bed. Yellowjacket noticed.

"Um, Blackjacket," She said. The boy zombie turned to stare at her.

"Do you. . . remember your past?" She asked, pausing as she thought of what to say. Blackjacket seemed confused about the question. He shrugged, then turned away from her.

"Meh," He said.

Yellowjacket sighed, and looked down at the floor. After a few minutes of silence, Blackjacket got up, and wandered to the door. Opening it, he vanished outside. Yellowjacket heard his footsteps down the hallway.

After some hesitation, she followed.

But, before she left, she took her yellow jacket.

* * *

 _ **(In Yellowjacket's Mind)**_

"Well that was weird," Star said, remembering what had transpired in the bathroom. "What possessed our Yellowjacket to do that?"

"Uh, Star," Brick said, standing behind her. "I think you need to look at this."

Star turned towards him, and she saw that the tray holding the core memories was starting to function, more than it ever had before. But she noticed something else.

The core memories were powering something beyond the Headquarters. Star saw it, as did the other emotions.

Goofball Island was functioning again.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	21. Rush

_Drunken Hamster: Funny you should mention that, because the plot is starting to progress itself._

 _Korrasami 88: Hooray!_

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Oh, also, about Zuul... don't worry, those guys aren't finished in the story yet._

 _Razorback 234: Thank you for the compliments. And I've prepared this chapter earlier than usual._

 _I am a burglar: Fine._

 _Antha1: Indeed._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Who, exactly?_

 _Candlehead: Yes, it was fun writing this story._

 _Minty Zaki: Let's find out._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: She was... you know what, never mind._

 _UltraTech Cinder: You really like changing your name. And indeed, let's hope for the best._

* * *

Yellowjacket and Blackjacket started to walk towards the door leading outside the apartment building. Blackjacket's hand rested on the doorknob, Yellowjacket watching uncomfortably as his fingers tightened around it.

Yellowjacket's clawed hand shot out and gripped Blackjacket's shoulder, attracting his attention towards her. Yellowjacket's eyes illuminated in the darkness, and they contained worry in them.

 _Don't do it,_ The stare told him.

Blackjacket stared at her, conflicted, then said, "Just need to feed." With that, he turned the doorknob, and pushed the door open. Yellowjacket immediately dodged behind Blackjacket to avoid the gaze of the dozens of zombies on the streets. She didn't know why she was frightened; wasn't she one of them? However, she just couldn't shake the feeling that she just wasn't truly a part of them anymore.

Yet, at the same time, she wasn't a Freak, either. She wondered if she was somewhere in the middle.

Blackjacket shook her hand off and confidently walked onto the streets. It was then that Yellowjacket noticed that, for some reason, there were no zombies on the streets. She wondered where they had all gone. However, relieved that they weren't there, Yellowjacket ran onto the streets and joined Blackjacket as they strode down the sidewalk.

Neither one of them noticed a small, pale girl approach the open door of the apartment.

* * *

Bill and Jill were gathering medicines in the hospital with a few other members of the group. However, their mind were evidently elsewhere; Bill stopped gathering medicine when he saw a picture of a young, ill girl patient. She reminded him of Riley.

Bill felt a hand on his shoulder, and turned to see Bob standing next to him.

"Hey, we've been noticing something odd with you two lately," He said, his arms folded.

Bill raised an eyebrow. "What... what do you mean?" He asked, trying to sound as non-suspicious as possible.

"You spend a lot of time hanging out in that building," Bob pointed out. "We barely see you two. What's going on?"

"Nothing," Bill said bluntly, and then he realized that the rest of the group was staring at him and his wife.

"Oh really, now?" A man named Larry inquired, his eyes narrowed. It was then that Bill realized the truth; the real reason the group had suddenly decided to join them on a scavenging mission. They had noticed that he and Jill weren't around as much. He had been a fool to think they wouldn't think much of it.

"So... what is it?" Bob asked, approaching Bill, who was sweating profusely now. Jill was doing the same.

Then, the door next to them was smashed open, and several dozen zombies came crawling inside.

Bill had never been so happy to see a horde of zombies enter a room in the whole year he had spent fending them off. As they advanced upon the group, Bill had the perfect opportunity to avoid revealing his daughter to the group.

Grabbing his wife by the wrist, he dragged her out through the door, his gun in his hand. As two zombies shambled towards them Bill aimed his pistol and fired two rounds. One zombie was struck in the shoulder and fell. The other was struck in the arm, but continued forward, so Bill slammed his fist into his jaw and floored him.

Close behind him, the rest of the group came crashing through the open door. One man turned around to fire at the zombies, then shut the door. The zombies started punching through the door, and the group continued running.

Bill had secretly hoped the zombies would get them. Reluctantly, he led them through the building, dodging past swarms of zombies. They ran down a hallway, three or four zombies pursuing them. Jill paused, spun around, and kicked a trolley down the hallway. It crashed into the zombies, knocking them to the group.

Bill dodged into a room which held no zombies. Jill joined him soon afterwards and, separated from the group, they ran into an emergency exit. They ran down the stairs in a crazed panic. One zombie suddenly burst through a door and limped towards them, but Bill brought his gun up and decked the zombie in the jaw, and it went flying off the railing. Bill and Jill continued running as they heard the zombies ghoulish screams as it vanished into the darkness below.

Bursting out the door and into a hallway, Bill and Jill stopped when they were met with a crowd of zombies in the hallway. Lifeless eyes turned to them, and the zombies stood, blocking their only way of escape.

Bill held up his gun as a warning, but there were too many of them. The zombies started to advance, but suddenly, the couple saw a member of the group run out from behind the crowd, light a Molotov cocktail, and chuck it at the zombies. The hallway was lit aflame, as were the zombies.

Bill and Jill took the opportunity to shove past the burning zombies and make it to the end of the hallway. Grabbing a stroller, Bill shoved it through the door, smashing it open, and the couple dove out into the sunlight, landing on the group.

Bill and Jill lay on the ground, relieved at their escape, but mostly at having avoided answering the group's question. However, their joy was disrupted by a growl, and they turned to see a zombie tear down the streets towards them.

Bill sighed, raised his gun, and fired.

* * *

Yellowjacket and Blackjacket were eating a piece of cold meat at a restaurant. A few zombies were shambling in the restaurant with them, but the children took no notice.

Yellowjacket stared at her reflection in the plate. She noticed that she looked different now. She was still pale, but not the same shade as Blackjacket, or the other zombies in the room with her. Also, her eyes didn't look as lifeless. Dull, yes, but expressive. She wasn't quite as thin, and her hair was dirty-blonde rather than the ash blonde it had been some time ago.

She was still a zombie, but she had more life in her now.

It was only then that Yellowjacket noticed the stares. She was staring at her reflection, but she could feel the other zombies looking at her. It appeared they, too, noticed how different she looked from them.

Feeling uncomfortable, Yellowjacket got up from the chair and walked out through the back exit of the restaurant. Blackjacket followed her.

Yellowjacket soon wished she had never taken the back exit, however, as she found herself in a damp alleyway. And, even worse, she and Blackjacket weren't alone.

Several zombies stood in the darkness, their glowing eyes staring at the two children, but especially at Yellowjacket. Slowly, they came out from the darkness, approaching the young girl. Blackjacket stood defensively in front of her, but the zombies didn't slow down.

The two were about to run in the opposite direction, but one zombie jumped off from the apartment outside staircase and landed in the alleyway, blocking their path. He approached the two, his back hunched over as it neared them.

Yellowjacket felt her hand grasp Blackjacket's wrist and tighten around it for comfort. She bared her teeth and snarled at the zombies as they approached, but they continued forward.

The hunchbacked zombie stopped when it was a few feet away from the two, and then it stood upright, showing how tall it was. It towered over the two children.

Before the zombies could do anything, however, there was a cry of surprise, followed by the sounds of gunfire. The zombies turned to the sound of the gunfire and, immediately, they skirted past Yellowjacket and Blackjacket, lumbering out of the alley.

Yellowjacket and Blackjacket followed them, and saw a small group of Freaks, cornered by the zombies. They weren't part of Bill or Jill's group, Yellowjacket noticed.

The Freaks were firing at the zombies to try and keep them at bay. Yellowjacket knew it was pointless; there were too many zombies to shoot them all. She wondered why they didn't run when they had ample opportunity to, and conceded that they were just stupid.

One Freak fired at the two children, and they immediately ran down the street to avoid the bullets. The hunchbacked zombie took the opportunity to sink its teeth into one Freaks's shoulder, and the zombies advanced.

Yellowjacket and Blackjacket heard the bloodcurdling wails as they ran, but they ignored it. They only stopped when they heard the sounds of bones crunching, and the screaming abruptly stopped.

For a moment, Yellowjacket craned around to stare off in the direction that the zombies and the Freaks were. Then, she turned and continued running, taking Blackjacket with her.

The two didn't stop until they reached the apartment. Then, they continued running; up the stairs, down the hallway, and finally into the room. Yellowjacket bent over to catch her breath while Blackjacket flopped onto the bed.

Yellowjacket turned to the door, and wondered why it had been open when she came back; she thought she had closed it when she left with Blackjacket. She took no notice, however, and walked up to eat some of the treats Bill and Jill had left for her.

She looked through a stash of hot dogs and fish meat, searching for some steak that Bill had gotten. She stopped when she realized that there was no steak left. But she thought she had made sure there was some left for when she came back.

Yellowjacket stared at the food for a moment in deep thought, then shrugged her shoulder and went over to the bed to sleep.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	22. Exit Larry

_Normally I'd wait for more reviews, but I want to continue this story quickly and update ASAP._

 _Korrasami 88: They're coming for you!_

 _Creamy Buttercap: What are you going to do, review them to death?_

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: They just did._

 _Drunken Hamster: You'll find out quicker than you think._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: You thought all Hell was breaking loose in the last chapter. You haven't seen anything yet._

 _UltraTech Cinder: I've heard some people want a zombie apocalypse to happen just so they can kill the people they don't like._

 _Antha1: I'm leaning towards the former._

* * *

That night, Bill and Jill decided to spend the day with the rest of group, if only so that their suspicions of the two would cease and they wouldn't suspect anything.

Sir and Larry watched the two as they slept in the room next to where the rest of the group was. Sir turned to Larry, his eyebrows creased.

"Something weird is going on with those two," He told Larry. "They've been spending a Hell of a lot of time in that building. I think they're hiding something, and I want you to find out what it is."

"Why me?" Larry asked. Sir didn't answer; he just put a handgun in Larry's hand and sent him off towards the apartment next to the building.

Larry slowly creaked open the door leading to outside the building, and peered outside to make sure there were no zombies outside.

The streets were clear. Larry cautiously stepped outside, looking left and right to make sure that there were no walkers outside, spying on him. However, he found no evidence. The streets were clean, and the air was silent.

Putting the gun in his pocket, Larry walked towards the apartment building. He kicked a small soda can on the ground, and it tumbled onto the sidewalk. As it did, there was a small flash of black that soared out from a garbage can, and Larry jumped in shock, then calmed down when he saw it was just a cat.

 _Dumb animal,_ he thought as he twisted the doorknob to the apartment and let himself in. The apartment was pitch black in the darkness, and he could hardly see. Feeling around, he rested his hand on the staircase railing and proceeded to walk up the stairs.

In the forefront of his mind, Larry wondered what he was even doing here. What did he expect to find in the dirty apartment? Surely Bill and Jill weren't keeping an important secret from the group. He hoped to just scout the apartment, find nothing, then return to tell the rest of the group what a pointless mission he had been on.

He finally reached the top of the stairs, and walked down the hallway. It looked like he was staring into an empty pit, and unfortunately for him, there were no sources of light, not even a switch so he could flick the lights on and see.

With one of his fives senses rendered useless, Larry knew he would have to rely on the other four. Feeling through the walls to find a door, Larry also listened for any kind of sound for him to pinpoint a location.

Then he stopped. For some reason, he thought he had heard footsteps. He stayed as silent as possible, wondering if the noise was real or if it was his own paranoia. He heard nothing.

Larry then heard breathing coming from inside the room. He blinked once in confusion. He thought Bill and Jill were sleeping with the rest of the group.

He grabbed the doorknob, but before he twisted it, he whipped out his handgun. If there was someone else in the room, he wanted protection just in case that person was hostile, or worse, a zombie.

As he twisted the doorknob, he couldn't help but think that he'd seen the silhouette of a small girl at the end of the hallway. Ignoring it and writing it off as his own superstitions, Larry opened the door, and peered inside the room.

He saw a bed. And in that bed, he saw Yellowjacket and Blackjacket.

He was from a considerable distance away, but Larry could still tell they were zombies. They looked so corpse-like when they were asleep that there was no mistaking that.

Larry's eyes widened. Was this what Bill and Jill had been attending to? Two zombies? But why?

So many questions were circling in his head that he didn't feel the gun in his hand get ripped from his grasp until it was out of his reach.

Then, Larry heard an unmistakable growling coming from right behind him. He felt the low breathing down his neck, and before he could turn around, a clawed hand grabbed the nape of his neck and dragged him downwards to the creatures eye level.

In the short moments before his death, Larry saw it. Two dead eyes in the darkness, twisted into an angry glare. A pale face, twisted and ugly.

But the very last thing he saw was a row of fanged teeth, coming straight at his throat.

* * *

Yellowjacket awoke, springing out of her bed suddenly. She thought she had heard the sound of a bone being snapped, just outside the room. She looked at the door, and saw that it was open. She craned her head to the left and saw that Blackjacket was still sound asleep.

Grabbing his shoulder, Yellowjacket shook him awake. She then pointed a clawed finger at the open door. With a nod, Blackjacket got out of the bed, as did Yellowjacket.

The two slowly shambled towards the door, and pulled it all the way open. Their eyes had adjusted to the dark, so they could see far better than Larry had. Even then, they didn't see anything at first.

However, Blackjacket nudged Yellowjacket and pointed at the ground. She saw a stream of blood that seemed to stretch down to the end of the hallway.

Curiously, the two followed the trail of blood down towards the hallway, wondering whose blood it belonged to. They stopped at the end of a closed door. Yellowjacket pushed Blackjacket to the side and leaned her head against the door.

From inside, she heard the gnawing of flesh, and a hack. Yellowjacket hesitated, then gripped the doorknob, twisted it, and opened it. The two then walked inside.

It did not take them long to see what was inside.

First, they saw a corpse. Not a walking corpse, a very, very dead one. His throat was torn open, his face was mangled beyond recognition, and his stomach had been torn open.

In the darkness, the two could barely make out a small hand reach into the man's stomach, then pull out. . . _something_ , before raising it towards its mouth, followed by a crunching sound.

Then, the crunching stopped. Yellowjacket and Blackjacket stood paralyzed with fear as the sounds of the creature feeding came to a resounding halt.

Slowly, a small, wiry girl crawled out from the darkness. She stopped over the man's dead body and came into view.

Her hair was white and unkempt. She was dressed in a dirty white dress. Her nails were long and ghastly. Her head was lowered, so they could not see her face. However, they could see blood drip from her mouth.

Then, she looked up, and Yellowjacket and Blackjacket saw her blood-smeared face.

Then, the girl let out a scream, and she lunged at the two.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	23. Exposed - End of Act I

_Before I get into responses, I'll say this: on the subject of the girl who I'll call Whitedress, we see her a few chapters before in the story, just not in-person. Check to see where you can spot her._

 _Korrasami 88: Don't ask questions you know won't be explained at the moment._

 _Antha1: She wasn't really protecting them so much as she wanted something to eat._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Seriously? You don't know what happened to Larry? He's the guy Whitedress was eating._

 _GANGSTA: Ugh..._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Don't see romance where this is none. Then again, what would the shipping between Yellowjacket and Blackjacket be called..._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Not even close._

 _I am a burglar: Sure thing. She can chew on yours instead._

 _Drunken Hamster: I, too, did not notice the Black and Yellow until now._

* * *

Yellowjacket and Blackjacket did the one thing they felt they could.

They ran.

Tearing through the open door like a scared rabbit, the two zombie children scattered down the dark hallway in a crazed panic. They could hear the terrifying screech of the other girl as she gave chase.

The two ran back into their room and started gathering up whatever they could find. Yellowjacket hurriedly put on her yellow jacket while Blackjacket put his cap on. The screams of the pale girl echoed down the pitch black hallway, and her footsteps grew louder as she approached.

Without a moments hesitation, Yellowjacket and Blackjacket bolted out of the room, sparing a few seconds to see the pale girl's ghoulish face and lifeless eyes, illuminated by the full moon through the open window.

Yellowjacket urgently grabbed the doorknob and started to twist it, her hands shaking and fumbling around the doorknob. The pale girl let out a screech that tore into Yellowjacket and Blackjacket's ears, and she approached, her arms extended and whipping around in the air, claws out.

Finally, Yellowjacket pulled the door open, harder than she expected, and she and Blackjacket ran down the stairs. They did not stop, they did not hesitate, they just ran. Blackjacket turned his head around for one second, and caught a glimpse of the pale girl's body, concealed in the darkness. She let out another cry of rage, and blood flew out of her mouth.

Yellowjacket gripped Blackjacket's wrist as she led him down the staircase as fast as she could. She knew she wasn't going back up those stairs ever again after what she'd seen. Whatever that thing was, Yellowjacket knew that the people she had to find were Bill and Jill.

In the back of her mind, it struck her as ironic that she wanted a Freak to protect her from one of her own, but that thought was pushed into her subconscious.

At the moment, all she wanted was to be with Bill and Jill. That was in the forefront of her mind as she burst through the door and out into the open. And then, she ran towards the Freaks' building.

* * *

"Boss, where's Larry?" One man asked Sir as the two stood outside the room Bill and Jill were sleeping in. The rest of the group hadn't been informed of where Larry had gone; Sir and Bob were the only ones who knew.

"He went out to get something," Sir reassured him, but secretly wondered himself where Larry was. It was unusual for the man to be out for such a long time, and he'd expected that Larry would be back by now to explain what he had found.

He was about to send someone out to go fetch Larry when he heard the sound of footsteps racing up the stairs. For a moment, he assumed that Larry was back, and he felt momentary relief.

In an instant, however, that relief was shattered.

The doors swung open and Sir found two young zombies burst into the hallways. They ran in a panicked frenzy, approaching Sir at a fast pace.

"What the Hell?" One man shouted, and he ran towards the room to alert the rest of the group. The two zombies followed the man as he opened the door, and they bolted into the same room as the rest of the Freaks.

Shouts of surprise and horror arose as the two zombies suddenly scattered through the room. Men, women and children jumped up and ran to avoid the two zombies, lest they be infected by them.

They didn't know it, but the two weren't intending to attack anyone. They were looking for Bill and Jill. They would run up to someone, and upon realizing it wasn't either of the Andersens, they would turn away.

Sir ran in and said, "Get me my gun!"

At that point, all of the sudden shouting had awoke Bill and Jill from the next room. Wondering what all of the panicking was about, the two got out of bed. Bill took out his gun just in case a zombie had entered the room.

Walking into the hallway, the two saw three people exit the room in a hurry. Now certain more than ever that there was a zombie in the room, Bill readied his gun, burst in, and prepared to fire.

He stopped, however, when she saw it was Yellowjacket and Blackjacket. He dropped his gun in shock. Jill gasped, wondering why their daughter had followed them to the hideout.

Bill and Jill heard the sound of Sir loading his gun and aiming at Yellowjacket, who was stumbling about, confused. Immediately, Jill rammed into Sir, knocking him to the ground and causing him to drop his gun. The remaining members of the group gasped, shocked that Jill would attack Sir.

It was then that Yellowjacket noticed Bill and Jill. The two saw how Yellowjacket's face went from terrified and confused to relieved and joyful. Quickly, she ran towards Bill and wrapped her arms around him in a caring embrace. Blackjacket watched from a distance.

"Riley, what are you doing here?" Jill whispered to her, but she took no notice. She didn't realize that the rest of the group were watching, eyes widened, as the zombie held Bill in her arms.

Bill noticed the looks of discomfort from the rest of the group. "Um, Riley..." He said, making a slight effort to push his daughter off of him, lest the group think he was infected.

Riley looked confused as to why he had done this. Her eyebrows were scrunched up and her eyes held an air of naivete. It was only then that she realized she was in the same room as nearly a dozen Freaks.

With a gasp, Yellowjacket backed away from the rest of the group, her head whipping about as she estimated how many there were.

Getting to his knees, Sir said, "Bill... what is going on?"

Bill and Jill both knew now that the jig was up. They couldn't conceal the truth anymore.

With a sigh, Bill said, "We found our daughter," He explained slowly. "We... brought her with us."

There was murmurs of contempt from the group, and Bill, hoping to defuse the situation as much as possible, reassured them, "Riley's not dangerous! She's, uh, recovering, I think. She hasn't eaten us, and I think she's starting to remember-"

"He's insane!" One woman shouted. "Kill the zombie before she eats us!"

Bob pulled out his gun and took aim at Yellowjacket.

"No!" Bill shouted and punched Bob in the face, breaking his nose. The group began to advance towards Bill and Jill to subdue them. Yellowjacket grabbed Blackjacket's hand as she backed up against the wall, scared of what would ensue.

Then, she saw Sir's gun on the floor. She looked up to see the group surround Bill and Jill. Without a second thought, she dove towards the gun, grabbed it, then aimed and pulled the trigger.

Yellowjacket felt the force of the gun knock her back. The sound of the bullet exploding from the barrel of the gun ricocheted in her ears. She saw the bullet leave the gun and go flying at the group, followed by a cry of pain.

Yellowjacket didn't know who she had shot, as several members of the group tumbled to the floor in a panic. She saw blood spray on the grounds and wall, and she knew she had hit someone. For a second, she worried that she might have shot Bill or Jill.

Bill and Jill emerged from the bodies of the group unharmed, and Yellowjacket sighed with relief. The two briefly stared down at the group, and then they ran towards Yellowjacket. Bill grabbed Yellowjacket by the arm, and Jill grabbed Blackjacket by the collar, and the four of them tore out of the room in a panic.

It was clear that there was no going back now. Yellowjacket had just shot someone. There was no way they could convince the group she wasn't dangerous now.

"Bill!" They heard Sir shout. "Jill!"

They ignored him. They ran down the stairs and out the door and into the darkened streets. Once they were outside, the stood for a moment to catch their breaths. Bill straightened up and stared at the building, and contemplated what had just happened.

* * *

 ** _(In Bill's Mind)_**

". . . What just happened?" Anger asked as the emotions remained silent, utterly perturbed at how quickly things had gone downhill.

"How did they. . ." Disgust whispered, then paused as he tried to think of what to make of the situation. After a while, he just said, "Game over, man. Game over."

"So that's it, then?" Anger asked the rest of the emotions. "We're just. . . going? We're abandoning them? Huh."

The emotions remained quiet, until Fear suddenly sprang up and shouted, "Called it!"

The emotions all turned to stare at Fear in disbelief, and the purple emotion then shrank down into his chair, embarrassed.

* * *

Yellowjacket wrung her hands in self-deprecation, realizing what she had just caused.

"I'm. . . sorry," She said to Bill and Jill, hoping that they didn't hate her now. Jill turned to stare at her daughter, then turned to the building and sighed.

"Perhaps it was for the best," Was all she said.

Bill walked a distance away, and scouted the area to make sure there were no zombies nearby. After a while, he told the other three, "Come on, we have to get out of here. Find a place to stay."

Bill then started walking. Jill, Yellowjacket and Blackjacket followed him. They walked down the streets into the night, uncertain of what lay ahead of them.

But one thing was certain.

From now on, they were on their own.

* * *

 _ **End of Act I**_

* * *

 _Whelp, who expected that? Anyways, Act I is at a close. Now, we're going on to Act II._

 _Read and review._


	24. On The Run - Start of Act II

_And here I was thinking I was losing reviewers. Glad to see I was wrong._

 _Korrasami 88: She is not. Not at all._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Further than... never mind._

 _Drunken Hamster: Thank you. We're really only getting started here._

 _Js: 1. He just randomly stumbled upon her 2. Since we're only NOW in the middle of the story, it's pretty much guarenteed to be longer 3. There's several villains, some more evil than others 4. It's just in SF 5. I'm updating faster since I finished my other stories and thus have more time to focus on this one._

 _UltraTech Cinder: I'd say they made the greatest decision of their lives._

 _MrScourch: The gunshot was NOT fatal, and they are leaving the group (though *spoilers" it's not the last we see of them). I'd say that "eat the parents" idea is starting to wind down._

 _Antha1: This isn't the last we're seeing of Whitedress. She has more to do with the plot than you think._

 _GANGSTA: Never mind._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: By leaving._

 _The Batista: No you won't._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Yeah, yeah, yeah._

 _Candlehead: She's not a ghost._

 _Minty Zaki: You'll find out._

 _Kevinkocher1: This story is SOOOO not Warm Bodies._

 _I am a burglar: You do that. It's not like it's important or anything._

 _Also, I have to say, I'm over two hundred words in from responding to all of these reviews :)_

* * *

 ** _Act II_**

* * *

Four figures trudged through the empty streets of San Francisco. One was a man and his wife, and in front of them was their thirteen-year-old zombie daughter, and her zombie friend.

Yellowjacket was chewing on some fish meat from some of the food Bill and Jill had gotten before they were forced to abandon the apartment. Blackjacket was dragging a guitar at his side, staring off into space. Bill and Jill walked behind them, not wanting to let the two out of their sight.

"So, where do we go?" Blackjacket asked, shrugging. "We've been walking for... some time."

They'd been walking for an hour. Being reminded of this caused Bill to notice that his legs were getting weak. They needed to find some other means of transportation, or else they'd all collapse, and they'd have no chance of finding a place to stay.

They weren't going into any of the buildings. All the buildings they'd come across, they knew were crawling with zombies. That was the only reason the streets weren't full of them. Occasionally, they'd catch a glimpse of a zombie shuffling inside a building, just barely concealed by darkness.

"We need to find a place to move faster," Jill suggested. There were several cars parked nearby; however, they didn't have any car keys.

"Crap," Bill whispered under his breath.

Yellowjacket and Blackjacket started to inspect several of the cars. When she reached one car, she noticed it had its keys in it. Glancing up to Bill and Jill with a hopeful smile on her face, Yellowjacket opened the car door, then jumped and shouted in surprise.

Bill and Jill ran towards the car just in time to see a dead body fall out of the car seat and slump onto the sidewalk lifelessly. Blackjacket walked up the body, leaned down, and started poking at the body, as if expecting it to come to life.

Bill shoved the body to the side with his leg, then grabbed the keys. He looked up, making sure that no zombies were nearby, and then he started to engines of the car.

Turning to the two young zombies, Bill whispered, "Get in," before opening the door of the back of the car. Yellowjacket hurriedly rushed in first while Jill sat in the passenger seat. Bill then turned to Blackjacket, and groaned when he saw that the boy had wandered a few feet away.

Walking over to Blackjacket, Bill was about to drag the boy off to the car when he stopped. He noticed that Blackjacket was staring at something in an alley. He saw it too.

In the darkness of the alley, there was a dead dog. And kneeling above the dead dog, tearing its insides out, was a zombie.

Bill nearly puked. He realized how much danger they were in now, and started to drag Blackjacket away, but it was too late. The zombie's head snapped up and its lifeless eyes focused on the two.

Bill and Blackjacket started running. As they did, a zombie suddenly jumped off from the rooftops and landed on the sidewalk next to them, quickly dashing towards them. Before long, several zombies shuffled out of the darkness and onto the streets.

"Crap!" Bill shouted as he dove into the seat of the car while Yellowjacket pulled Blackjacket into the backseat next to her. Bill shut the door and quickly rolled up the window shield as a zombified woman limped over towards him.

"Start the car! Start the car. Star the car!" Jill repeated as a zombie started banging his fist on the window shield. Yellowjacket and Blackjacket started screaming as a zombie planted his face next to the window of the backseat.

Bill revved up the engines, and the car started. Ramming into several zombies and knocking them back, Bill drove down the streets. The zombies briefly started to pursue, but it was hopeless. They had no chance of keeping up with the car.

Once they were a good distance away from the zombies, the four all breathed a sigh of relief. However, they noticed several zombies were starting to appear on the streets, and Bill stated, "We have to get out of here!"

Bill drove down a different road, narrowly avoiding several zombies. They started driving down towards the forest, when suddenly, a fist smashed through the window shield. Bill shouted in surprise as the face of a zombie peered over the broken window, having latched onto the top of the car.

Bill started driving erratically in an attempt to shake the zombie off of the car. However, the zombie grabbed onto his sleeve in a desperate attempt to stay on the car. Yellowjacket, thinking quickly, grabbed Blackjacket's guitar and swung it towards the window. Bill saw the guitar coming from the rear-view mirror and quickly ducked, and the guitar collided with the zombie's face. The zombie went flying off the car and went soaring into a garbage can.

"Yeah!" Yellowjacket shouted, fist-pumping the air. Bill and Jill started laughing in relief as they drove into the forest. Bill then started driving the car through the woods as they searched for a place to hide out.

They didn't notice the destroyed truck smashed against the tree as they passed by.

* * *

Some time later, Bill stopped the car on the side of the road. He'd spotted a dark cabin in the forest, and figured that it would make a good place for the four of them to stay.

"Get out," Bill said as he opened the door and got out of the car. The other three quickly got out of the car as well and wandered on the road for a bit, checking to see if there were no zombies nearby.

"Okay, coast is clear, let's move 'em out," Bill said, leading the other three towards the cabin. Upon arriving, Bull opened the door, and the four entered.

The cabin was rather spacey inside, with plenty of room to move about. It was surprisingly tidy despite having supposedly having no living inhabitants.

Yellowjacket wandered away from the other three and started inspecting the house. As she did, she stepped on something soft and furry, and jumped when she realized it was a dead mouse.

Bill gripped her shoulders, then led her off towards the basement, where Jill and Blackjacket were going. Jill flicked on the lights in the basement, and the four walked downstairs.

The basement had a bedroom and a rather fancy couch, as well as a television set. Bill shrugged his shoulders; of all the places they could've stumbled upon, this was far from the worst.

While Blackjacket entered the bedroom, Yellowjacket slumped down on the couch, her head down. She still felt guilty about getting them into the situation.

"I'm. . . sorry," She apologized to the two. "It was just. . . there was this girl, and she was eating this man. She chased us. We had to run. I didn't mean for you two to get kicked out."

Bill nodded in understandingly. "I don't blame you," He said, sitting down next to her. Smirking, he said, "I didn't really like those guys anyways. Compared to them and the zombies, I'd take the zombies."

Yellowjacket giggled softly, then rested down on the couch as she started to fall asleep. Jill sat down next to her, resting her hand on Yellowjacket's head.

"So we're staying here for the time being?" She asked for confirmation.

Bill nodded. "It could be worse," He said, shrugging. "After all, at least there's no zombies here besides these two."

Jill smiled, and the two lay down on the couch next to their daughter.

* * *

Upstairs, four zombies sat in the upstairs room, staring at a _Warm Bodies_ novel. They were the same zombies from the forest.

"Zuul," The fat, red-haired zombie said as he nudged the male twin zombie playfully. "Zuul."

"Knock it off, Rob," He snapped, then turned back to the novel. "So, who goes first?"

"Mary says we each get an hour reading the book," The blonde zombie reminded them. "Besides, none of you are going before me."

"I'm second, you hear me?!" Mary said, pouting. "I don't care what happens next."

"You ain't about to go before me!" Rob snapped, towering over the other three. "If you try, you're all going out the window!"

"Hey, it's by Isaac Marion," The blonde zombie pointed out as she read the back cover. "Oh, I'm definitely going first now!"

Immediately, the male zombie twin got up. "Enough, you guys," He said, his nose held up. "We're better than this. Mary has set up specific rules for us to follow. Each of us will get to read it, but first, we much remember that we are better than the rest of the rabble."

The other zombies shrugged in agreement. "Indeed, George," Mary said, nodding.

George then added, "Besides, I go first."

The other three nodded again in agreement, when Rob heard the sound of footsteps coming from downstairs.

". . . Hey, do you hear something?"

George paused, then said, "Eh, probably just the mouse."

* * *

 _Read and review._


	25. New Living

_Korrasami 88: Two are boys, two are girls._

 _I am a burglar: Next thing you know, you'll steal the rights to this story!_

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Seriously? You have NOTHING to say?_

 _Drunken Hamster: Well it's not like they get much visitors anyways._

 _Antha1: Bookworms or not, they toppled a freaking truck._

 _Kevinkocher1: I looked her up, and the girl from 30 Days of Night is VERY creepy._

 _Tseung: Yes, you are. In fact, everyone: try to spot the reference with the names of our four friends here._

 _Minty Zaki: They don't really have a leader._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Sure thing._

 _UltraTech Cinder: It'll pass._

 _Guest: Interesting, indeed._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Out of the frying pan and into the fire._

 _The Batista: You just tell yourself that._

 _Candlehead: Yeah, fine._

* * *

Yellowjacket fidgeted uncomfortably in her sleep as she lay next to Bill and Jill. As much as she subconsciously tried to, her mind could not be put at ease while she slept.

Yellowjacket nearly screamed aloud as the nightmare played in her mind.

* * *

 _Riley watched, frightened, as Bill and Jill packed their belongings as they prepared to leave. They could hear the sounds of screams and howls of agony from outside the window, drowned out by the sound of gunfire._

 _"We have to go, now!" Jill was saying, but Bill took the time to look out the window to see what was transpiring outside. Riley saw the way his face filled with dread, and he turned, prepared to bolt through the door._

 _Suddenly, the window was smashed through, and a large man dashed inside, his face savage and ferocious as he lunged at Bill. Riley let out a scream as she pointed at the man, and Bill spun around and blasted the man in the face. He slunk to the ground immediately._

 _Bill grabbed Jill and Riley by the wrists and led them through the door, but as they ran to the stairs, they heard a crashing sound, followed by the door being toppled over and several feral-looking people swarming inside._

 _Riley heard Bill swear, which he almost never did, and then he led them down the stairs, shooting several of the feral people as they pushed past them. Riley barely avoided being clawed and bitten by them._

 _The feral people seemed to ignore the three as they raced by, shuffling around the room. Bill, Jill and Riley began to make a break towards the door, but stopped when they saw what was happening outside._

 _Several neighboring houses were on fire, and there were men in black jackets, shooting at the feral people in the streets. Some of the men were savagely taken down and mauled by the feral people._

 _Bill, Jill and Riley stood at the door, unsure of where to go, lest they get similarly attacked._

 _Then, the three heard a loud shriek, and they spun around to see a wild-looking man lunge at them._

 _But he wasn't aiming for Bill, or Jill._

 _He was aiming for Riley._

* * *

Yellowjacket jumped awake, and was surprised to find that Bill and Jill were gone. She also noticed that the lights were on.

She whipped her hear around, trying to see where they were, and found Blackjacket in the middle of the room. he pointed upstairs, and it was then that Yellowjacket heard the sound of a television being turned on, and the sounds of soccer being played.

Yellowjacket listened to the sound, then groaned in annoyance.

* * *

"You know, this place is surprisingly well off considering nobody's been here for who knows how long," Jill noted as she prepared breakfast. Bill was sitting on the couch, watching soccer and eating chips.

"Bill, do you really need to have that so loud?" Jill asked, putting her hand on her hip. "What if the zombies hear it?"

"There are no zombies this far out in the woods as far as I'm concerned," Bill said casually as he watched the television screen. "It's a shame we never found out who won in the big leagues after 'you know what' happened."

Jill sighed, nodding. During that time, Yellowjacket and Blackjacket walked upstairs.

"What's going on?" She asked. Bill and Jill shrugged.

"We're making breakfast," Jill said with an enthusiastic smile. "You probably won't like it. It's just boiled eggs."

Yellowjacket made a gagging sound, then turned and walked over to use the bathroom while Blackjacket returned downstairs. Jill rolled her eyes and returned to cooking.

* * *

Upstairs, Mary was flipping through the _Warm Bodies_ novel when she stopped as she heard the sound of the television screen being played downstairs.

Setting the book down, Mary shouted, "George! Rob! Is that you?!" Her cries were drowned out by the sound of the television. When she received no response, she shook her head and returned to reading.

"Stupid boys," She said.

* * *

A group of young Freaks were running through the woods to avoid an oncoming wave of zombies who had set their sights on them. They fired several bullets at them in an attempt to ward them off.

One zombie pounced from the side and tackled one Freak. The two soared into the air and off the side of a cliff, and the sound of bones being broken were heard as the two landed. The Freaks ran to the cliff, and found the zombie mauling the unconscious and injured Freak below.

"Leave him!" The leader of the Freaks said as the zombie horde approached. The Freaks fled through the woods, dodging through branches and thickets to escape the overwhelming horde.

Finally, they ducked behind a large log, and heard the sound of the horde racing pas them, having not seen where they went. The zombies vanished into the dark forest, leaving the group.

The moment the last of the zombies were gone, the Freaks breathed a sigh of relief. One of them stood up, pacing around as he relished their lucky escape.

Suddenly, a massive hand grabbed the man from behind, and he was yanked behind a tree before he could shout out for help. The sound of a few punches were heard, alerting the rest of the small group, now consisting of three.

"Um, Max?" The leader of the group asked. He received no answer. He turned to the man sitting at his left, who shrugged.

The leader then turned to stare at the third member of his group, sitting next to a toppled tree, and he gulped. The third man saw his stare, and he slowly turned around to see a large zombie with red hair casually sitting next to him, one massive arm slung around his shoulders.

The zombie turned to the leader of the group, and winked. The leader then turned to the man on his left, and found a zombie dressed all in black sitting between them, his arms slung around their shoulders.

A woman with white hair then dropped from the trees onto the ground, and turned to the leader of the group, and grinned mischievously.

The leader gulped.

* * *

Three hours later, the three walked back to their cabin, not noticing the car parked nearby. They walked up to the door, twisted the doorknob, and opened the door.

Once they were inside, they were surprised to find several plates with half-eaten food on the table, a bag of chips on the ground, and the bathroom door wide open.

Confused, the three zombies entered the house. Rob went to the bathroom while George went over to the television.

"Hey, someone's been eating my chips," George said as he waked up to the empty bag. "Shelley, have you been eating my chips?"

The blonde zombie shook her head. As she did, the fat zombie walked out of the bathroom, his face twisted into anguish.

"What is it, Rob?" George asked.

The Rob turned to face him, a look of utter horror on his face.

". . . Someone forgot to flush."

* * *

 _Read and review._


	26. Unscrew

_Drunken Hamster: Where do you think I got the inspiration from?_

 _Korrasami 88: Okay, let's just get this out of the way: George A. Romero and Rob Zombie._

 _Kevinkocher1: Well, in a way, but there are differences that will be revealed later._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Not really._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: More like a flashback._

 _I am a burglar: Sure thing._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Fine, do as you will._

 _Antha1: Oh, definitely._

* * *

Later that evening, Jill stood outside the locked bathroom door, slamming her fist against it impatiently as she waited for who she thought was her husband to get out.

"Bill, are you done yet?!" She shouted as she continued banging on the door. "You've been showering for nearly a half hour!"

She got no response; all she heard was the sound of the shower being turned on higher, and she could see smoke seeping out of the door. She could also hear loud singing coming from inside the bathroom.

After a while, Jill rolled her eyes and left, walking down the stairs and muttering to herself. She walked downstairs into the basement, where Blackjacket was playing the guitar.

* * *

Inside the bathroom, George was singing "New York" by Alicia Keyes.

 ** _"On the avenue, there aint never a curfew ladies work so hard, such a melting pot on the corner selling rock preachers pray to-"_**

 _"Zuul."_

Letting out a resounding, "What the heck!" George flew out of the bathroom tub, dragging the curtains with him as he crashed onto the ground, wrapped up in them. Looking up in shock, he saw Rob standing in the tub, holding a washing soap in his hand.

George stared up at him, his mouth hanging open in shock.

"Zuul," Was all Rob said. "Zuuuuul..."

With that, he turned the shower on and started showering in the tub.

* * *

Outside the cabin, Bill and Yellowjacket spied on a crowd of zombies that were wandering close to the cabin. Neither of them were sure just how the zombies had made it this far into the woods, but they knew they had to find some way to lure them off.

"Ready to make me proud?" Bill whispered to Yellowjacket. The blonde zombie nodded, then quietly slipped off towards the zombies.

The crowd of zombies shambled through the road, passing by the car leading towards the cabin. The zombies had seen the lights within the house, and they prepared to advance towards it.

Suddenly, the zombies heard the sound of a young girl's cries coming from behind them. Turning around, they made out the silhouette of a young zombie girl deep in the woods, beckoning them to come. Intrigued, the zombies turned from the house and limped over to where the girl was.

Once she had their attention, Yellowjacket pointed in the opposite direction from the house.

"There!" She shouted. "There!"

As she said so, Bill fired a bullet off in the direction the zombies were pointing. The zombies immediately ran off in the direction of the bullet, abandoning the house. Yellowjacket and Bill watched as the zombies vanished into the woods.

The moment they were out of sight, Bill ran out to where Yellowjacket was standing, lifting her into the air and giving her a large hug. Yellowjacket returned the hug.

"You did great, Riley!" He congratulated as he set her down. Yellowjacket nodded, her hair falling over her face as she and Bill returned to the cabin.

* * *

 _ **(In Yellowjacket's Mind)**_

"This is weird," Brick noted as the emotions huddled around the control panel. "I didn't feel mad at him."

It hadn't gone unnoticed by the emotions that the Headquarters had started to change in the past few days. Aside from a few of the personality islands starting to function again, multiple memories were being restored, and things weren't pitch black in the Headquarters anymore.

"Long Term Memory has been fixed, too," Nerve pointed out as the emotions ran over to the window to overlook the landscape.

"Huh," Star said. She then noticed the light-bulb that was screwed into the control panel. She turned to stare at Bill for a moment. Then, she whispered something to Teardrop.

"Are you sure?" The blue emotion asked. Star nodded.

Teardrop shrugged, then waked over to the control panel.

Then, she unscrewed the light-bulb.

* * *

Some time later, Bill and Jill were sitting on the couch in the basement, Bill reading an old newspaper and Jill reading a book, while Yellowjacket and Blackjacket started to play hockey inside.

Bill casually ducked as a hockey puck went flying in his direction and smashed into the lamp. Then, he said, "Hey, could you take that outside?'

Yellowjacket nodded, and she and Blackjacket started to head up the stairs. The moment they were gone, Bill noted, "You know, we should probably go and find some food before we run out."

"Good idea," Jill noted before setting down the book. She and Bill then headed up the stairs, where the door was hanging open where Yellowjacket and Blackjacket had left it.

"So, where do we go?" Jill asked as they left the cabin and got into the car.

Bill shrugged. "If my calculations were correct, there should be a hotel in the woods nearby," He stated.

"That's an odd location," Jill muttered to herself as Bill started the car and the two drove off down the woods.

The moment they were gone, Rob and Shelley exited the house.

"Rob, do you really need to go to that hotel?" Shelley asked, her hands on her hips. "There are so many other places to gather things."

"But I like the hotel," Rob retorted. "Besides, I always find Freaks there." With that, he lumbered off in the same direction as the car. Shelley sighed as she watched him leave, and she was about to return to the cabin when a hockey puck went flying past her face.

Immediately, Yellowjacket and Blackjacket ran out and retrieved the puck. Turning to Shelley, Yellowjacket said, "Sorry," Before the two of them returned to the woods.

"Good evening," Shelley said casually to the two as they left. Then, she returned to the cabin.

Walking up the stairs, she then opened the door where George and Mary were sitting on the bed.

"Mary," She said to the female twin in a serious tone. "There are two little ones outside the cabin. _Deal with it_."

* * *

 _Read and review._


	27. Hotel

_Korrasami 88: Huh, so that's their designated name from the reviewers. Ignoring that half of them are girls..._

 _UltraTech Cinder: You'll find out._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Again with the 'Zuul boys' nickname._

 _I am a burglar: Can you get past the Zuul, though._

 _Antha1: She was more annoyed than scared._

 _GANGSTA: Yeesh._

 _The Batista: Take a hitch._

 _Drunken Hamster: Her having no reaction is kind of the joke._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Indeed._

* * *

Bill and Jill drove the car to a stop when they reached the hotel in the forest. The hotel wasn't too big, nicely fitted within the thicket of trees.

"Well I'll be damned," Jill said, surprised that someone had actually made a hotel this far out in the woods. She and Bill got out of the car and approached the hotel, and noticed a few dead bodies both outside and inside the hotel.

The two tried to ignore the bodies as Bill opened the door and forced his way in, followed by Jill. Flicking on the lights, the two took the time to admire the hotel.

"I wouldn't be opposed to moving Riley here," Jill noted as she searched the place for anything they could possibly take with them.

They didn't just take food; Jill took a perfume bottle from a hotel room, trying to ignore the rotting corpse of the bottle's owner lying next to the bed. Bill took a razor and a toothbrush from a bathroom.

After a few minutes, the two were ready to leave. However, as they headed for the door, they paused.

Just outside the hotel door, the two saw several zombies lumbering outside. There weren't many of them, maybe five or six, but the two saw one giant one with large fists and bright red hair. He shoved past the other zombies and started heading straight for the door.

Bill urged Jill out of sight, and the two hid behind a wall. Peaking out from the side, the two observed the zombies. The other zombies circled the hotel while the fat, red-haired zombie made his way through.

The zombie twisted the doorknob and opened the door, strolling inside casually. Bill and Jill watched as the zombie walked over to a glass of water, took it in his hand, and drank it. Tossing the empty glass away, the zombie next walked over to the bathroom. Bill and Jill pressed against the wall as the zombie slipped through the door and vanished inside.

Bill and Jill stared at the bathroom door for a moment, and heard a gasp of relief, followed by a toilet being flushed. They then heard the sound of a bathroom tap water being turned on.

"I think we should be going now," Bill said after a moment. Bill and Jill slowly walked towards the door, and were immediately met with the pale face of a zombie.

The zombie growled, and Jill kneed him in his tenders. The zombie collapsed on the ground, groaning in pain. Bill and Jill breathed with relief, but that was shattered when the door was smashed open and several zombies lumbered through.

Bill and Jill then saw a large shadow engulf them, and they spun around to see the giant zombie standing before them, towering over them. He spread his arms out wide as he leered over them.

 _"Zuul mother-fu_ \- Hey!"

The zombie was cut off when Bill and Jill ducked underneath his massive arms and took off past him, racing towards the back exit of the hotel. Kicking the door open, the two dashed outside, the zombies starting after them.

"Crap, crap, crap!" Bill shouted as he and his wife circled around the hotel, dodging several zombies along the way, before finally making it to the car. The two dove in, started the car, and drove off into the woods, leaving the zombies in the dust.

"Well, that could've gone better," Jill said. "I hope Riley's doing better than us."

* * *

On a frozen lake, Blackjacket ducked as the hockey puck went flying past his head. Yellowjacket smiled, and flew her hands in the air in victory.

Since they had started playing, Yellowjacket hadn't lost one round against Blackjacket. Playing the sport made her start to remember a time when hockey was one of her favorite things.

Blackjacket lumbered off of the lake to retrieve the puck. When he returned, he was prepared to set it back on the frozen lake when he paused.

Yellowjacket was confused as to what was taking him so long. She noticed that his eyes were wide and his jaw was dropped, and that he was staring past her. Intrigued, Yellowjacket turned around to see what he was staring at.

In front of her, Yellowjacket saw a young woman dressed in black. She had pale skin and hair the color of night, cut to around her shoulders. She looked strikingly like Ghoul, only younger.

". . . Uh," Yellowjacket hesitated, the hockey stick dropping out of her hand. The woman beckoned with her head for the two to follow her, and gripped Yellowjacket's wrist. Cautiously, the two followed her out of the marshes.

As the two children followed the woman, she asked, "What's your name?"

"Y-Yellowjacket," The blonde zombie girl replied, stuttering a bit. "That's Blackjacket." She motioned to the boy behind her.

"I'm Mary," The older zombie said, not looking at the two but staring forward. As they exited the marshes and approached the cabin, she asked, "What are you two doing out here?"

"We. . . live here," Yellowjacket said with a shrug.

Mary paused, and she turned to stare at the two in bafflement. She then looked at the cabin.

"What?"

Before anyone could say anything else, the three heard the sound of a car driving by. The car came to a skidding halt and Bill and Jill dashed out. They ran over to the two children, out of breath.

"Zombies. . . really fast. . ." Bill said as he struggled to catch his breath. It was then that he noticed Mary, and that she was holding Riley.

"Riley, watch out!" Bill shouted as he pulled out his gun. Before anyone could respond, he pulled the trigger.

The bullet grazed Mary's arm, causing her to shriek in pain and release Yellowjacket, who ran to Bill's side. Blackjacket stumbled backwards and fell onto the ground. Mary collapsed on the ground next to him, clutching her bleeding arm.

Bill, Jill and Yellowjacket stepped away from the zombie fearfully, only to hear an enraged cry from behind them. Bill spun around and was immediately tackled by George. The gun flew out of Bill's hand as George slammed Bill onto the ground.

George began to thrash Bill with his fists, but Jill grabbed a tree branch and struck him in the side, knocking him back. A clawed hand gripped Jill's head, and she was thrown away by Shelley. Before she could do anything else, Yellowjacket suddenly ran towards Shelley and began shoving her back repeatedly, crying out in fury.

Shelley stood, confused, wondering why the zombie girl was protecting a Freak.

Quickly, Bill grabbed Blackjacket and Yellowjacket and rushed them into the house, Jill following close behind. They slammed the door behind them and locked it.

George and Shelley ran towards the door and began knocking on it, but they received no response. George angrily started jumping up and down on the ground, and Shelley shoved him, shouting, "Stop acting like a baby!"

At that moment, Rob came rushing towards the cabin. He saw an injured Mary, and promptly asked, "Okay, what did I miss?"

* * *

 _Read and review._


	28. Scouting

_Korrasami 88: Yay, reviews!_

 _Kevinkocher1: Indeed._

 _Drunken Hamster: I think you need to sober up._

 _UltraTech Cinder: What he said._

 _Antha1: No, they're not related. They just look similar._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Watch your language._

 _I am a burglar: Fine._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: There's no accident. Nothing to see here._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Her name is Mary._

 _The Batista: No you're not._

* * *

The moment the four were inside the cabin, Bill locked the door. Then, he and Jill grabbed everything they could to barricade the door; chairs, tables, and any other piece of furniture nearby. Then, they shut the windows and closed the blinds.

For a moment, they stood by the door, listening for the sounds of the four zombies outside. They could barely make out whispering coming from outside, and knocking on the door. They heard the sound of a hand twisting the doorknob, but it was no use. The zombies were locked outside.

When it became clear that the zombies weren't getting through the door, Bill and Jill breathed a sigh of relief, then turned to Yellowjacket and Blackjacket.

"What happened out there?" Bill asked sternly, his hands on his hips. He mainly asked Yellowjacket, who had proven the most articulate of the two zombies.

"There was this woman outside," Yellowjacket said, motioning with her arms. "The one you. . ." She pointed her fingers and mimicked a gun shot. Bill nodded and motioned for her to continue.

"Then you came," She continued. She looked around, and then walked upstairs, motioning with her arm for the others to follow her. They walked upstairs, and went into a room, where they saw a _Warm Bodies_ novel.

"Who reads these stuff?" Jill asked as she threw the novel away. She then noticed a picture of George and Mary pre-infection on the drawer. Picking it up, she showed it to the others.

"It's them," She said, pointing at it. She then pointed to another photo, that showed Rob and Shelley joining the twins in a selfie.

"You think this is where they live?" Blackjacket asked, rubbing his head. Bill and Jill looked at him in shock.

"You mean. . . we were living in the same cabin as. . . zombies?" Bill asked. He noticed Yellowjacket's baffled expression, and then added, "Not you, I meant them."

Jill walked over to the window and peered outside. Down below, she saw George sitting on a rock outside the cabin, pouting. Shelley was starting a fire outside, and Rob was sitting next to a bleeding Mary.

She stepped back and said, "It seems they won't be getting inside. We better rest up."

Yellowjacket walked over to the window and stared down at the four zombies. Shelley was rubbing stones together to form a fire, and Rob was trying to find whatever he could to put pressure on Mary's wound to stop the bleeding.

Yellowjacket couldn't help but feel that they weren't just mindless zombies.

* * *

Ghoul and Noose watched as Sawbones exited another empty building after a futile search attempt. In the days that had gone by without Yellowjacket, the zombie trio had finally decided to go and search for their young comrade. They had managed to track her scent to a certain part of the city, unaware that she had already left that area.

When Sawbones got out of the building, Ghoul motioned with her arms, silently asking if he'd found any sign of her. When Sawbones shook his head, she whirled about and slashed the wall of a building with her claws.

Sawbones stabbed one of his blades into a nearby wall in anger. Noose watched the two, somewhat frightened. He didn't like when they got angry like this. Recently, the two had seemed so unstable.

He was broken out of his thoughts when a mangled ear dropped down the side of a building and onto the ground. It attracted the attention of Sawbones and Ghoul, too, as they looked down to stare at it.

Sawbones picked up the bloody ear and stared at it, then looked up to see where it had come from.

Above them, on an outside staircase, they saw a pale girl in a white gown, feeding on the corpse of a man. Her face was tearing into the man's stomach, and her claw-like hands gripped his shoulders. Her hair was matted with blood.

Sawbones, Ghoul and Noose stared up at the girl as she fed. Slowly, her head rose up from the man's torn stomach, and she stared down at them, blood dripping from her mouth. After a moment of silence, she growled down at the three.

Sawbones returned the growl, his eyes narrowed. Ghoul and Noose watched as Sawbones and the girl in the white dress exchanged growls and hisses at each other in an attempt to intimidate the other into leaving.

The girl unexpectedly threw one of the corpse's bloody arms down at the three zombies. It splatted on the ground at Sawbones's feet. Noose jumped and shrieked. Above, the girl grabbed the body and dragged it into the building to continue feeding in privacy. The zombie trio could still hear her loudly chewing on the man's flesh.

Ghoul looked down at the body parts of the man, and noticed that, among the things that had fallen, was the corpse's wallet. She picked it up, and pulled out the name card of the man.

 _Larry Z. Roe_

Searching through the man's wallet, she noticed the credit cards of several other people in it. She pulled each of them out, flinging most of them onto the ground in disinterest, until she stopped at one that caught her attention.

The credit card was that of an older man with brown hair. She noticed that, from the picture, he needed a razor.

 _Bill Andersen._

Staring at the picture, Ghoul's eyes widened in shock. She recognized the man; he was one of the two Freaks that took Yellowjacket. She started shrieking and grunting, striking Noose in the arm to get his and Sawbones' attention.

Sawbones saw Bill's credit card, and took it in his hand. He saw the picture. He, too, recognized him.

The three zombies knew that whoever Larry was, he had known Bill. Larry was dead, but he knew Bill, and that must mean that Bill was nearby.

So that must mean that they were closer to finding Yellowjacket.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	29. Break-In

_Well, this got an unusually low amount of reviews. I'm hoping this story isn't losing popularity already; we're starting to get to the good stuff._

 _Antha1:... Never use that title to describe Sawbone's gang. Ever._

 _Korrasami88: Watch out, Korra!_

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Yes, run from her. Run from that plot device!_

 _UltraTech Cinder: You best do that._

 _I am a burglar: Can I just call you burglar from now on? Okay, okay? Great._

* * *

George and Shelley started a fire outside of the cabin, burning woods on the ground to create a makeshift campfire. Rob and Mary, still recovering from her bullet wound, huddled around the fire to keep warm.

"Well, this is an unexpected turn of events," Shelley said as she rubbed her hands over the fire. George was still glaring at the house, embittered that his twin sister had been wounded by the Freaks.

"Zuul," Rob whispered to him. He received a punch in the shoulder from George.

"Shut it, Rob!" He snapped, and continued sulking as he stared at the house. "What are we going to do now? They have our territory."

Shelley was tossing sticks into the fire to keep it burning. "We can easily break in," She pointed out as he held one long stick over the fire as it cracked and burned.

George shook his head in disapproval. "No, it's our house," He pointed out. "I want it in perfect condition. I don't want to ruin it because of some Freaks."

Mary, who had remained silent throughout all of this, suddenly spoke up. "I know a way in," She said. She got up and wandered towards the back of the house, followed by the other three.

When they reached the back of the cabin, Mary pointed to a wooden door that lead to the basement.

"Hey," George said, his eyes brightening up. "We haven't used this since we were. . . whatever we were."

Mary pulled the door open, and Shelley slunk into the basement. Rob stepped in next, but quickly became wedged inside the tiny door. Shelley started pulling on his arms while George and Mary pushed from behind him until he tumbled inside with a thud.

* * *

Blackjacket had been wandering through the cabin ever since Yellowjacket, Bill and Jill had fallen asleep upstairs. He was alerted to the sound of a thud coming from in the basement.

Against his better judgement, he wandered down the stairs towards the basement to investigate. He stopped at the door, and pressed his ear against it for any sounds coming from below.

Initially, he heard nothing.

"Hello?" He whispered, hoping for an answer.

"Knock, knock," A voice said from the other side of the door.

"Who's there?"

The door then swung open and a giant hand sprang from the darkness right at Blackjacket's face.

"ZUUL, MOTHER-SUCKER!"

* * *

Ever since the Andersen's had abandoned the group with the two zombie kids, the now smaller group was forced to collect any medical equipment to treat the man who had been shot by Yellowjacket.

"Came back with these anesthetics," One man said as he returned from the city. "Don't know what's it for, though."

"Damn that zombie," Sir said as he stared at the man's bullet wound in the stomach. They were currently trying to find a way to remove the bullet.

"I'll kill her when I find her," Bob vowed to Sir. "But, what do we do if we find Bill and his wife?"

"They're in cahoots with a zombie," One woman said. "They're probably infected as it is. They're as good as dead."

Bob nodded. Then, he pointed out, "What will happen if any other zombies come here?"

"Those two kids are the only ones who have, so far," Sir reassured him. "I doubt any other zombies will. Besides, there have been less zombies around here recently."

Bob shrugged in agreement, though deep down, he wondered why the zombies appeared to be leaving the area. Then again, it was probably a good thing that they did.

He was broken out of his thoughts when he heard the sound of a door being opened below. He figured it was another member of the group, either leaving or returning. Hadn't they already gotten what they were after, though?

Loading his gun, Bob exited the room and walked down the empty hallways. Twisting the doorknob, he opened the door and walked down the staircase, wondering what he would do if he came across a zombie in the lower sections of the building.

 _Zombies are stupid,_ He reassured himself, flashing a smile. _If there is one in here, I can deal with it easily._

He heard the skittering of footsteps down below, and his confidence started to wear thin as he came nearer to the bottom of the apartment. It sounded as if there were more than one person down below.

Just as he was starting to consider heading back up and warning the group, a face suddenly appeared out of the shadows right before him. Bob shouted out in surprise and prepared to pull out his gun, but stopped when he recognized the man as one of the members of the group.

"Oh, it's you," He said, relieved. "You scared the crap out of me."

The man didn't respond. His mouth hung open, and his eyes were rolled back into his head.

"Dude, what's up?" Bob asked, starting to feel a prickly feeling in the back of his neck.

The man then slumped down onto the ground, and Bob saw a knife wound in his shoulder, and a fresh bite mark on his arm. It was then that Bob heard the sound of a zombie growling coming from the next flight of stairs below.

"Oh, crap," Bob said, and he spun around to run. Suddenly, a dark figure climbed up the railing and onto the staircase above Bob. He was met with a woman with pale skin and pitch black hair, giving her the appearance of a ghoul. Her mouth was dripping with blood.

Bob swore under his breath, and turned in the opposite direction, only to see a rather portly zombie dressed in a business suit. Between the two zombies, Bob took the safest option and took off past the businessman-looking zombie, shoving past him and making a break for it.

He was stopped at the stairs when a third zombie appeared out of the shadows. An old man with butcher knives in his hands, his eyes held an air of murderous intent. He flipped his knives in his hands as he approached Bob.

Bob turned around, and saw the two other zombies coming from behind him. Quickly, he pulled out his gun, fumbling with it as he struggled to aim and fire. Just as it pointed it at the female zombie, she patted it out of his hand easily. It clattered onto the ground below.

With his only weapon having been taken from him, Bob started swinging his arms at the three to keep them away from him. The knife-wielding zombie lunged at him, and grabbed his arm. The two grappled with each other, Bob trying to pry the knives from the older zombie's hands.

However, this distracted him from the other two zombies. The female zombie saw her chance, and quickly lunged at Bob.

Before he could stop her, she sank her teeth into his shoulder.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	30. Return of the Zuul

_Burglar: Yeah, that's what I'm calling you from now on. Get your own flame._

 _Korrasami 88: Zuul, mother-sucker!_

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Yeah, this isn't the last we see of Bob._

 _The Batista: Good luck._

 _GANGSTA: *sigh*_

 _Antha1:... Sure._

 _UltraTech Cinder: Yeah, the whole joke is how they have no idea how to handle zombies._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: He will be missed (not)._

 _Drunken Hamster: Ah, I was beginning to think you'd given up on this fic. Glad to see you back here._

* * *

Yellowjacket lay snuggled against Bill and Jill, half-asleep. Her mind was left to wander, and she thought of the four people outside the cabin. Assuming they remained outside, how would they be able to leave. They would be set upon if they tried to so much as open the door.

Yellowjacket thought it was funny. Days ago... she'd forgotten how long... she was terrified of the Freaks, and felt safe with the Others. Now, it seemed like this had been reversed- she felt safe with the two Freaks, and now she felt uncomfortable around the Others.

She remembered when she was in the alley with Blackjacket, and had been surrounded by a group of them. She saw the way they stared at her. It was as if they sensed that she was, in some way, different from them. For the first time, she had been concerned that they might have hurt, or even killed her.

She thought of Ghoul, Noose and Sawbones. She wondered if they were still thinking of her. She hadn't seen them since she had knocked Sawbones unconscious to save Bill and Jill. She hoped he had forgiven her.

She wondered what would happen if she saw them again. The others had noticed that she was changing; surely they would, too If they ever met again, would they understand? Or would they cast her out into the darkness now that she was of no use to them?

She was broken out of her thoughts when she heard a knocking on the door. She immediately assumed that Blackjacket was back. The knocking grew louder, and Yellowjacket got up to answer the door before Bill and Jill woke up.

She grabbed the doorknob, twisted it, and opened it.

Then, she froze.

Standing at the door was the giant zombie with red hair. He stared down at her, and extended his arms towards her.

"Zuul, mother-fu-"

 _SLAM!_ Yellowjacket slammed the door in his face.

"-OW! Son of a _bitch_ , ow."

* * *

Yellowjacket flew into a panic. How had they gotten back into the house? She thought they'd barricaded the doors and windows. She then realize that Blackjacket was out there with them.

"Bill!" Yellowjacket shouted as she ran to the bed. She had to warn them before the Others got in. "Jill!"

She started violently shaking the two until they stirred awake. She wondered how they hadn't been awoken by the sound of the door slamming shut.

"They're in here!" She shouted before either could ask what was happening. "They-they're in the house!"

"What?" Bill asked, and he, too, got a panic-stricken face.

"Don't listen to her," A voice on the other side of the closed door said. Yellowjacket, Bill and Jill all went silent.

"Rob, you just gave away our position," A female voice snapped at the other one.

"Sorry," The male voice said.

Yellowjacket, Bill and Jill listened in on the conversation. Whereas Yellowjacket was more concerned with finding a way to stay alive in the house now that the Others were back, Bill and Jill had one thought in their heads.

"They can talk?" Jill said aloud. Yellowjacket turned to stare at her, confused.

"Yes," She said, not sure what Jill was so surprised about. "I can talk. Blackjacket can talk."

"But you two were different," Bill pointed out. "The other zombies don't talk like this. They-"

"Zombies?" Yellowjacket asked, perplexed. "Is that what you call us?"

"Yes," Bill said. "I mean, no. It's complicated. Don't worry about that right now. We have to get to the bottom of this."

It appeared that the voices on the other side of the door had been listening, since one of them said, sarcasm clear, "I hate to interrupt a family feud here, but let us in!"

"No," Bill snapped. "You're going to bite us and stuff."

"That's what you get for shooting at us," A female voice said, and Riley recognized it as Mary.

"That's what you get for putting your clammy hands on my daughter!" Jill shouted back.

Yellowjacket, who was remaining silent throughout all of this, was secretly perplexed at how the adults were bickering at each other like this. This sure didn't sound like what would usually happen when Freaks and "zombies" met. Every other times, bullets would be flying and people would be getting bitten.

Finally, she decided to break things up.

"Everybody, could you just quiet down?" She said. Turning to the door, she said, "Could you leave?"

"No," The voice, which she recognized as the fat zombie's, said. "This is our house."

"This is our daughter," Jill snapped. "And I'm not letting you take her. And you can turn me into a zombie for all I care, but you will not touch her."

There was a silence on the other side of the door. Finally, a different male voice said, "Well you'll have to open the door eventually. After all, we got a hostage!"

"Hostage?" Bill asked. It was then that they heard the muffled sounds of Blackjacket screaming, and they knew instantly that the four zombies had him.

Yellowjacket ran towards the door. "You let him go, you monsters!" She shouted, banging on the door. She heard giggling coming from the other side of the door.

"Not until you open the door," Mary's voice said. Yellowjacket froze. She wanted to save Blackjacket, but she knew that if she opened the door, the chances were that the Others would come for Bill and Jill. And she knew she couldn't stop them.

"We'll leave you to think on it," Shelley's voice said, and the three heard the sounds of footsteps leaving the door. The footsteps went down the stairs, and Yellowjacket, Bill and Jill knew that they had left.

Once they were gone, Yellowjacket turned to the two Freaks.

"What do we do?" She asked.

However, neither of them had an answer.

* * *

Back at the abandoned building, the pale girl had finished eating the corpse of the man she had come across. Now that she was finished, she pulled his corpse into a small closet and shut it.

The pale girl wandered through the dark building. She wiped blood from her mouth as she passed through the door. Now that she was alone, she could think.

The Others usually only bit a Freak that they met, to transform them. Pale Girl did not do this. She usually strayed away from Freaks, and in the rare instances where she did encounter them, she would not spare them. She would consume them like a spider did to whatever was ensnared in its web.

Most of the Others stayed away from her. _Good,_ she thought. She did not prefer to live in packs or swarms like the others did. She hated groups, hated multitudes of people together. Especially when they'd come after a lone person.

She held the tiniest bit of empathy with a lone victim. She knew what it was like for a group of people to take advantage of their numbers to capture a lone person who couldn't fight back. She remembered how she had been one at some point. It was torture. But she was strong. She had escaped. The ones who had captured her had come for her, but she always stayed ahead of them. And if they found her, she would kill them. Simple.

If necessary, she'd kill every person that came for her, until none of them were left.

But she would never need help. She didn't remember her parents, or anyone who loved her, never in her whole life. She remembered some details of who she was in the past, but it never involved someone's care.

She knew that nobody cared for her. She knew that everyone, Freak or otherwise, feared her. After all, that was why so many of the Others had been leaving this part of the city. Because of her.

Let them. After all, it was better to be feared than to be loved.

And fear was all she knew.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	31. The Zuul Bites Back

_Al Drin Hoshizora: I have no response._

 _Korrasami 88: No. Not at all._

 _Antha1: No, she does not have a purple wig and two swords. What are you even referencing._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: I guess._

 _I am a burglar: Beats me._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Are you talking about Pale Girl?_

 _Drunken Hamster: Well, you'd be too, if you've gone through what she went through._

 _UltraTech Cinder: Indeed she is._

* * *

Blackjacket sat on a couch in the basement, silent, as Rob sat next to him, one giant arm slung around his shoulder to keep him from trying to escape. Rob was currently watching television, flipping through the channels.

The other three had left Rob to guard their hostage while they remained in the living room upstairs, trying to pass the time as they waited for the Freaks and the weird zombie girl to inevitably leave the room.

Blackjacket wasn't known for his talking, especially to strangers. He hadn't been much of a talker even before his infection. However, the anxiety and boredom was starting to get to him.

"So, is this all you guys do to pass the time?" He asked, shrugging his shoulders as much as he could. "You just watch. . . that?"

"Yep," Rob said, his eyes still focused on the screen. He was still flipping through the channels, and stopped when he saw an episode of _The Walking Dead_ playing. Setting the remote down, he slouched on the other side of the couch to watch the show.

He let out a chuckle when a man got his head bitten off by a zombie. Blackjacket, on the other hand, felt a queasy feeling in the pit of his stomach, and tried to divert his eyes away from screen. This didn't go unnoticed by Rob.

"What, are you scared?" He asked mockingly. "Isn't this what life is about?"

"Eh," Blackjacket said as he forced himself to watch the television screen. A swarm of zombies were now on the screen.

"Is that what you plan to do to. . . them?" He asked, pointing upstairs. Rob nodded.

"Then Freak will be a Freak no more," He declared. "We just got to wait for them to leave."

Blackjacket went silent again as he and Rob watched the TV. A few minutes passed without a word from either of them, when Rob suddenly exclaimed, "I'm bored."

Flipping the TV off, Rob started rummaging through a bunch of video games on the drawer. He found _Left 4 Dead 2_ game.

"Ah, my favorite one," Rob said as he pushed the game disc into the XBox machine and waited for the game to start playing.

"Hey, I love that game," Blackjacket said as the screen turned one, and he recognized the popular zombie game.

"I thought I was the only one who still did," Rob said, a hand on his heart. Quickly, he passed Blackjacket one of the remotes.

"You know, you're a weird type of guy," Blackjacket noted. "The one person I've met that's as smart as you guys is Yellowjacket?"

"What's that?" Rob asked as he selected which game mode to play. He decided to play as the zombies.

"The girl," Blackjacket noted. "You know, yellow hair. Yellow. . . jacket." He pulled on his own jacket. Rob nodded, and said, "Oh yeah. Oh well, shut up and let's play."

The game turned on, and the two players were immediately met with the survivors, shooting at them.

* * *

Upstairs, Yellowjacket, Bill and Jill had been thinking on what course of action to take when they were suddenly alerted by the sound of gunfire coming from downstairs.

"Whoa! What's happening?!" Bill asked, jumping out of the bed. Yellowjacket snapped up.

"Freaks?" She immediately guessed. That was the only conclusion she could reach. She remembered that Blackjacket was downstairs, and she instantly bolted towards the door. Before either Bill and Jill could stop her, she threw the door open and shouted, "Blackjacket!"

"Oh, Fishy Uncle Candy Kanes!" Bill shouted out as he grabbed the gun and followed his daughter out of the room.

Jill stood still, and said, perplexed, "What?" Before she, too, bolted out the door.

* * *

George, Mary and Shelley were playing cards on the table when they heard the sounds of bullets coming from downstairs.

". . . Is Rob playing that stupid game again?" Shelley asked, baffled. Before the other two could respond, they all heard a battle cry coming from upstairs. All heads snapped upwards to see Yellowjacket trapeze over the railing and onto the floorboards.

"What the f-" George started, but was cut off when Yellowjacket grabbed a vase and hurled it at him, which he dodged by slightly tilting his head.

Yellowjacket rolled to the side, grabbed a plate, and chucked it at the three zombies, who scrambled to dodge it. She rolled again, grabbed a flower pot, and hurled it at Shelley, who dodged. She then shouted, "Hey, stop breaking our stuff!"

Yellowjacket rolled to the side, and promptly crashed into the wall. She crashed onto the ground, dazed.

"Ow," She whispered, rubbing her head. The three zombies stared at her, perplexed, when a bullet flew past their heads and through the window. The three spun around to see Bill holding a gun on them.

"Not another step," He warned, cocking the gun. Jill stopped on the stairways as she saw them.

Shelley stared up at the two, then whispered, "Mary, hit the decks."

"Hit the what?" Bill said, lowering his gun. Quickly, Mary punched a specific part of the floorboards, causing the house to start shaking. Suddenly, a portrait fell off the wall and crashed onto Bill's head, sending him toppling down the stairs.

"Yes!" Shelley shouted, clenching her fists.

"Hey!" Jill shouted, offended, and she chucked a portrait at the three, striking Mary in the face with it. She stumbled backwards and crashed onto the table.

"Mary!" George shouted, distracted, and was promptly punched in the face by Bill. He stood, stunned, then punched him back. The two started punching each other in the face rapidly. Shelley ran to join the fray, and was promptly punched by Bill, sending her flying into a wall.

Bill punched George to the ground, and shouted, "A-hah!"

George soon retaliated by reaching up, grabbing Bill's nipples, and twisting them, causing Bill to scream out and drop onto the floor. George got up, and was promptly kicked in the face by Jill. He crashed onto the ground with a black eye.

As Bill stumbled to his feet, Mary lunged at the two, knocking them back. Before she could do anything else, Yellowjacket suddenly sprang into the air and landed onto her back. She started pinching and scratching her as she struggled to pry the younger girl off of her.

"Hey! Get off of me! Get off!"

"I'll help you," George declared, and ran to try and grab Yellowjacket. The moment he grabbed her, however, Yellowjacket spun around and latched her teeth onto his shoulders.

"AUGH!" George shouted as Yellowjacket bit into his shoulder. He pried her off of him, and stood, shocked.

"Ow, ow, what the heck?" He said. "That really freaking hurts."

"I know it does, that's why I did it," Yellowjacket retorted.

". . . You're not very nice," George said. He was suddenly tackled by both Bill and Jill, and the three smashed through the door leading into the basement. The three stumbled down the staircase and landed with a heap on the floor.

"Bill?!" Yellowjacket said, jumping off Mary. "Jill?" She ran towards the basement, followed by Mary and Shelley. They stopped to see Jill lying on Bill, George's legs sticking out from under Bill.

The three ran down the stairs, and started to grab and pull the other three off of each other. As they did, Rob, who was sitting on the couch near them, paused the videogame, turned to the six, and said, "Do you mind?"

Shelley jumped up and stared at him. "What?"

"We are trying to play a game here," Rob said, his hands on his hips. By now, all eyes were now on him and Blackjacket. It was only then that the they realized that the two were playing a videogame.

Instantly, all six scrambled to their feet. "What?!" They all shouted.

Rob un-paused the game. "Anyways, let's see if you're as big a Freak-killer as you say you are," He said to Blackjacket. He nodded, and the two continued playing.

The six continued staring at the two in disbelief.

". . . I think I just had a brain fart," Yellowjacket said.

* * *

 _ **(In Yellowjacket's Mind)**_

"Well, we're not getting this stench out of here anytime soon," Pixie said as the emotions plugged their noses to keep from collapsing from nausea. Nerve accidentally breathed in the toxic air, and promptly slumped onto the ground, unconscious.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	32. Family

_Finally, a chapter that got ten reviews. I've been waiting for that._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Yes, you got the title right._

 _Korrasami 88: I thought you said you'd make your reviews more detailed?_

 _Kevinkocher1: I have no idea what that is._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: The whole point was that they WEREN'T mindless._

 _I am a burglar: Indeed._

 _Antha1: Just something the big guy likes to say._

 _Drunken Hamster: Um, okay then. No fighting, though._

 _UltraTech Cinder: I've only played the game once. As for Zuul, see Antha1's response._

 _Creamy Buttercap: So much fun._

* * *

A half hour later, both groups were standing in the ruined living room.

"What in George A. Romero's name is going on?" Shelley asked as she rubbed her temple. "Seriously, what the heck is going on?!"

"There is a perfectly rational explanation for this," Blackjacket reassured her. Yellowjacket noticed that he was now trying to form long sentences. He appeared to be taking after her.

"Oh, like how it was rational to be playing a video-game with your captors?" George asked, his arms folded, his gaze on Rob. The large zombie shrugged his shoulders.

Yellowjacket was standing in between the two groups to keep them from tearing each other to pieces. She was currently holding Bill's gun. She stared at Bill and Jill, then at the zombies.

"So, who are you?" She asked the zombies, pointing the gun at them.

"I'm George," George introduced. Pointing to his twin, he said, "That's my twin sister Mary. And those two are Shelley and Rob. I don't really know how we came to live with them?"

"And you live here?" Bill asked. When the zombies nodded, he said, "So, we were living with zombies for, what, two days?"

"You have no problem living with them," Mary said, pointing at the kids. Jill side-stepped in front of her and said, "That's different. They're. . . smart."

This caused Bill to ask a question that he'd been wondering since he met those zombies. "Speaking of which, what about you?" He asked, pointing at them. "You can talk. You can play video-games. You watch TV. How are you zombies?!"

"We've always been a cut above the rest," Mary said, though she didn't elaborate. Bill squinted his eyes, confused.

"Seriously, that's what you call us?" Yellowjacket asked. "Zombies? Aren't they. . . dead? I'm not dead."

Bill, realizing that he'd offended his daughter, turned and said, "No, it's not like that. You're different from them."

Yellowjacket spread her arms and shook her head, a confused look on her face to indicate that she didn't understand what he meant. "So, what am I?"

"You're our daughter," Jill reassured her, resting a hand on her shoulder. "Nothing will ever change that."

Unfortunately, the four adult zombies felt the need to explain their own opinions. "You know, she is rather weird," Shelley quipped. "I mean, she's hanging out with Freaks. I thought we ate Freaks. What, is she some kind of Freak, too?"

Yellowjacket felt a chill down her spine. "I am one of you," She said, shivering. "I'm not a Freak."

"Of course you're not," Bill said. "You're normal." The moment the words flew out of his mouth, he stopped and said, "Wait, what?"

"So. . . she _is_ a zombie?" George asked, scratching her head.

"I'm not a zombie!" Yellowjacket declared, an aggressive edge to her voice. This caused the zombies to step backwards.

"Then what _are_ you?" Rob asked, after a tense silence.

Yellowjacket dropped the gun. Her head whipped around at her parents, then at the Others. Finally, she grabbed hold of her hair and pulled on it, screaming out.

"Shut up!" She shouted out. "All of you, shut up!"

Before, anyone could stop her, she then tore towards the barricaded door. She violently hurled away all of the objects blocking it and then took off through the door and out into the woods.

"Riley!" Jill shouted out, an arm outstretched after her.

"I thought her name was Yellowjacket," Rob said. He turned to Blackjacket, who shrugged. There was a silence.

After a while, Rob said, "Oh well, we got a game to finish." With that, he and Blackjacket headed downstairs to the basement to finish playing the game.

The moment the two were gone, Bill put his hands on his sides, turned to the three remaining zombies, and said, "Oh good, you made our daughter self-conscious. Thanks a lot!"

George stared at the open door where Yellowjacket had left, then shrugged and simply said, "Women."

* * *

Yellowjacket sat on an outstretched tree branch a good distance away from the cabin. She hugged herself tightly, and rocked slightly on the branch.

"I'm not a Freak," She said to herself. She felt the cold wind against her skin and hair, and she took a deep breath.

"I'm not a Freak. I'm not a Freak. I'm not a Freak..."

She stopped when she heard a screech coming from in the woods. She turned, and saw, silhouetted in the dark forest, a lone zombie lumbered through the forest aimlessly. It didn't notice her as it limped past the tree.

As she watched it, mindless of its surroundings, she wondered: if she wasn't a Freak, then was she supposed to be that thing.

Zombies, was what Bill and Jill called then. But zombies were supposed to be dead. The dead that had been brought back. Yellowjacket wasn't dead, was she?

"I'm not like them," She said to herself bitterly. "I'm not..."

* * *

 _ **(In Yellowjacket's Mind)**_

In the Headquarters, a bright red light was blaring in the room. The Headquarters had turned dark again, and the locations had been shut down.

"This is bad!" Nerve said, running around in a panic. "This is really bad! Yellowjacket's having an existential crisis! We're doomed!"

Star was standing at the console, trying to figure out how to get it back into control. "I don't get it!" She said, pressing random buttons to try and change something. "What's going on?"

"She doesn't know what she is," Pixie explained. Oddly enough, she wasn't panicking, unlike the other emotions.

"What?" Star asked, turning to stare at her.

"She's wondering what she is," Pixie said. "She identifies with those Freaks, but she herself is not a Freak. On the other hand, she doesn't identify with the Others, but she technically is an Other. But if she doesn't identify with those who are like her, but identifies with those were are not like her, then who does she belong to?"

The other emotions were silent. The red light kept blaring.

"Wait, what?!"

Pixie groaned. "It's what Nerve said!" She groaned, exasperated. "She's having an existential crisis!"

"Oh," Brick said. ". . . I don't get it."

* * *

Several minutes later, Yellowjacket found that she wasn't alone on the tree branch. Before long, she was joined by Bill and Jill.

The three sat on the tree together, silent, as they wondered what to say. After a few moments, Bill said, "Well, this is an awkward situation, isn't it."

Yellowjacket gazed at him, but said nothing. She then turned and continued to stare off into the distance.

Bill put on a smile, and said, "Look, no matter what you think you are, zombie of whatever, you're still our daughter. Our monkey." He then made a monkey noise, ruffling her hair.

Yellowjacket turned to stare at him, and Bill realized that she didn't remember those memories. He went silent again.

A few minutes passed. After a while, Jill said, "Okay, we get it. You need to be alone. We'll leave now." The two started to get off of the branch and started climbing down the tree. However, before they could, Yellowjacket spoke.

"Jill, Bill, what's a daughter?" She asked.

The two paused. Then, they climbed back up the tree.

"A daughter is someone we care for," Jill said once they were back on the branch. "It's something you love. Our daughter is our whole world."

"But I thought I was a z-"

"No, you're our daughter," Bill interrupted. "We're your parents. I'm your father, and Jill is your mother. You are Riley Andersen, and we're your family."

"Family," Yellowjacket whispered.

She didn't know how, but she felt that she knew that word somehow.

"Let's go home," Bill pleaded with her.

"Home," Yellowjacket said, and she thought of the cabin. Was that her home now?

She felt that it was.

"Yes, let's go home," She said, and she jumped off the branch, followed by her parents. The three started to head back to the cabin.

As they did, Bill said to Jill, "Hey, remember our home back at the apartment?"

Jill nodded, and he said, "I wonder how they're doing?"

Jill shrugged, and said, "I bet they're doing just fine." She then kissed Bill.

* * *

Back at the apartment, the sounds of screaming filled the entire building.

"Joshua's down!" One woman cried as the three zombies surged through the apartment after the Freaks, biting and clawing everyone they could find.

"I lost my ipad!" One man cried.

"Oh my gosh, she's eating my son!" One woman shouted.

Sir was currently being dragged down by the zombie with blades in his hands. As the three zombies all loomed over him, Sir shouted, "Oh, how I wish the Andersens were here!"

* * *

 _Read and review._


	33. Patient Zero

_Thunder7964: Indeed._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Like that makes it any better._

 _I am a burglar: Fine._

 _Korrasami 88: No, it means she's going through a phase._

 _UltraTech Cinder: A bit dead inside._

 _Antha1: You sadist._

 _MrScourch: I was hoping to deconstruct the zombie genre, showing how inept the "survivors" were and how easily they get taken down by the zombies. Because, let's face it, even if you have guns, that won't stop an angry mob from swarming you._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Sure thing, Gloyd._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Hey, you've never had an existential crisis, have you?_

* * *

Two men walked through the empty streets, nearing the apartment building. The two looked around, making sure there were no other zombies besides the one they were after.

"I really freaking hate doing this," The older man said, flashing his flashlight into the windows of a building for any signs of who they were looking for. "I don't know why the boss is so concerned with finding this. . . thing."

"You know why," The younger man said in an attempt to reassure him. "Finding _her_ could be the key to fixing this whole mess."

The older man sighed. He knew what their boss wanted them to find. They were to recapture _her_. The source of if all.

Patient Zero.

"How do we even know that capturing her will cure this whole infection?" The older man asked, exasperated. "Even if we do find her and actually take her back alive, then what do we do? How will bringing back this one infected person cure the whole city full of infected people."

"You know why," The man reminded. "Because she was the first. She was the one who spread the infection to the rest of the city. She was Patient _Zero_. If we find the first, she could be the key to figuring out how to cure the city."

"Can't we find some other zombie?" The man asked. "One that is not as much of a killer?"

"The boss says it has to be the first," The other man said, and he flashed his light into an alleyway to see what was there. He knew that the Patient Zero loved the dark. However, all he saw was a small, pale rat slink away from the light.

"Even then, should we really be doing this?" The older man asked. "She's dangerous. She killed the last fifteen people he sent out, and she infected the other two dozen. When will the boss call it quits?"

The younger man didn't have a response. After a tense silence, the older man continued, saying, "How do we even know she's here?'

"She's here, alright," The younger man said. "Can't you feel it. How empty it is. The city's usually crawling with them, but her presence drives them off. They're terrified of her. You know she's here when even the other zombies won't-"

He was cut off when a dumpster was toppled over. The two men aimed their flashlights at the dumpster, wondering what had knocked it over. As the light flashed over the dumpster, illuminating the darkness, they saw the ever so slightest movement. The saw a pale figure, briefly consumed in light, then flee from the light and engulf itself in the dark.

In the dark of the night, they could hear her growling.

"It's her," The older man whispered. Quickly, the two pulled out their tranquilizer darts and prepared to aim. They knew they didn't have long before she got away.

However, they were caught off guard when a disembodied arm went flying at their heads. They dodged out of the way, dropping onto the ground. The guns clattered away from them.

As they struggled to pick themselves off the ground, they saw the small body of the pale girl in the white dress appear out of the darkness. She skittered on the ground on all-fours, like an insect, dashing at the two men in their moment of distraction.

"Crap!" The younger man shouted, and he picked himself up and stumbled for his gun. However, the Pale Girl was too quick for him. She soared onto her feet, her left foot smashing down on the gun. The sound of metal breaking in two filled the air.

Before the man could do anything else, Pale Girl lunged at him, her claws extended and her fangs out. She latched onto his body, her claws digging into his back. The man let out a scream, but it was cut short when the Pale Girl sunk her teeth into his throat.

The older man was just about to get to his feet when he heard the sickening crunch. He turned around just in time to see his partner's lifeless body fall onto the ground. Blood gushed from his wound, his head lolling to the side. His hand twitched for a few seconds, then it went still.

"No. . ." The man whispered as he saw his partner breath his last breaths before finally going limp. He stared at the body for a few seconds, in awe at how one who was once full of life was now deprived of it in such a short amount of time.

Because of her.

The man heard a hissing sound, and he looked up to see the Pale Girl, her lifeless eyes fixed on him. She growled at him, placing her foot on the dead man's chest as she did. Almost like she was taunting him.

The man got to his feet, aching the urge to kill her. However, he knew he was no match for the girl's speed and strength. His only chance was to run.

And run he did. He took off down the streets, sparing a few moments to turn around and stare at the girl to see if she was following him.

She wasn't. She just stared at him as he ran, her hateful eyes fixed on him.

Hateful, he noted. Every other time he encountered a zombie, he saw a bestial or primal hunger in their dead eyes. This wasn't the case with Pale Girl. When he looked into her dead eyes, he didn't see the hateful eyes of an angry predator.

He just saw hate, and rage, and bitterness. The hatred of someone who had been hurt so much that it had broken her.

And now she was out to exact that same hurt on those she deemed responsible.

* * *

Pale Girl watched the man run. She didn't bother chasing him; without his weapon, he wasn't a threat to her.

She looked down at the dead man below her, and she wondered why they were always chasing her, shooting at her, trying to catch her. In her deepest memories, that was all she could recall them doing.

Trying to catch them.

Once, she had been afraid. But now that fear had subsided, and she could only feel hatred for them. A murderous hatred.

If they ever came for her again, she'd spare them no mercy.

She'd kill all of them that sought to hurt her again, just like they'd done so long ago.

Then, she would never be hurt again.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	34. Unlocking the Past

_Al Drin Hoshizora: Since I'm getting a little tired of this, I'll just get it out right now:_ review the actual story. _A review is not a review if you're not even talking about the chapter. And I'm not tolerating you insulting the other reviewers like that, joking or not._

 _Korrasami 88: Oh for the love of... she's Whitedress. I've been calling her Pale Girl since at least Chapter 30. I thought you knew this._

 _UltraTech Cinder: You guess right._

 _Anonymous Guy: Yes, you are correct. And the official title for her is Pale Girl, not Whitedress, BTW._

 _MrScourch: Well I have to find some way to keep the story going without it getting boring. I can't have the rest of the story just be a sitcom with the Andersens living with these zombies. As for the zombies, it's the same reason why some people are stronger than others in real life._

 _I am a burglar: Oh, thank goodness._

 _Antha1: How did you decipher he caused the apocalypse so quickly?_

 _Js: Well, we'll just have to find out._

* * *

When the Andersens returned to the cabin, they jumped a bit when they saw the zombies in the living room, and then remembered that they weren't living alone.

"I take it you're leaving," George asked hopefully.

Bill sighed, still in disbelief at what he was doing. "Look, since we don't really have anywhere else to go, there being. . . well, you know, out there, I was thinking of staying here for the time being."

Mary and Shelley stopped playing cards, and they raised their heads to stare at the Andersens.

"Oh, isn't this great, now we have to live with the Freaks," Shelley said sarcastically. Bill and Jill squinted their eyes, offended at the comment.

Yellowjacket stepped forward. "Look, you and I are similar," She said, gesturing to them. "We are both. . ." She stopped talking and pressed her hands to her chest. ". . . Like each other. Do you understand?"

The three zombies mumbled. "Don't trust you," George said, mainly referring to Bill and Jill.

"I do," Yellowjacket retorted. Pointing at Bill and Jill, she said, "They. . . they may be key to me. . . finding my past."

The three zombies were silent. Yellowjacket tried to look as pleading as possible, widening her blue eyes and clasping her hands together.

"Please. . . I really want to see who I was. . ." She begged.

"Fine!" Mary said suddenly. "Only because you're one of us." Pointing to Bill and Jill, she then said, "They never will be, though. We may live under the same roof, but they will not be apart of us. . . or you, Riley." She pointed at Yellowjacket.

Yellowjacket blinked. Bill and Jill were the only ones who had ever called her by that name. The Others had only ever referred to her as 'yellowjacket'.

She said nothing, though. She turned and walked towards the basement door.

However, she stopped and turned to the zombies, a suspicious look on her face.

"And don't eat the Freaks while we're here, either," She snapped at them.

* * *

When Yellowjacket got downstairs, Blackjacket and Rob were still playing that videogame. She noticed that they were playing as zombies killing Freaks.

The sight of it made Yellowjacket lose her appetite for eating anything. During these last few days, zombies biting Freaks had become increasingly distasteful for Yellowjacket.

She walked into Blackjacket's room, and lay down on the bed. She was trying to think of some way she could relock her memories.

* * *

 _ **(In Yellowjacket's Mind)**_

"What do we do now?" Nerve asked Star. After Bill and Jill's talk with Yellowjacket in the woods, the Headquarters had come back under control. It wasn't dark anymore, and there was no flashing red light.

Teardrop was staring outside through the windows. "Look," She said. "Some of the islands are back up."

Star ran over and planted her face against the window. Indeed, Goofball, Hockey, and Honesty Island were functioning relatively well. The majority of the other islands were still not functionig, however.

"We have to get the other islands up," Star said, determined. "We have to relock our memories."

Brick looked over at the memory orbs. Several of them, mainly from the recent days she'd spent with the Freaks since they found her at the hospital, were up and running, but the others, from before she had become an Other, were not.

"I say we check all these memories," Brick suggested. "They've got to give us some sort of clue."

"Great idea!" Star said. The emotions immediately started looking through the memory orbs. Most of the memory orbs contained only recent memories, which weren't of much use. Occasionally, one of the emotions would find a memory of Yellowjacket in her 'Riley' persona. They saw some memories of her playing hockey, and a few hanging out with the Freak Blackjacket. Most were with Bill and Jill.

"Why do they keep showing up so often?" Nerve asked.

"Maybe they're what Sawbone, Ghoul and Noose are to us," Teardrop suggested.

Star shook her head. "No, they only came to check up on us, or when they wanted to take us hunting," She said. "Those Freaks were with us all the time."

"Are they someting more. . . important?" Teardrop asked.

Star said, "I don't know. But we're going to figure out."

* * *

Back at the apartment, the group lay on the group, covered in bite and claw marks. Bill lay at the bottom of the staircase, bleeding from his shoulder. Sir had his arm bent backwards, his face covered in scratches.

Most of the group was starting to turn gray, and their veins began to turn blue. Several of them were vomiting a green liquid on the ground, and others were foaming violently. Others were jerking and thrashing on the ground as the virus took effect.

Sawbones stood in the room, watching them as they turned.

"Freak. . . is no longer a Freak," He said, his lips peeling back to reveal a fanged grin. He had done his work well.

The door opened, and Ghoul and Noose name in. They had done a thorough check of the entire apartment.

"Yellowjacket. . . not here," Ghoul grunted. Sawbones frowned.

Ghoul pulled out the wallet and pulled out Bill's card.

"Not here either," She said. Sawbones frowned. They may have found the two Freak's group, but it seemed they had escaped yet again.

Sawbones turned to the open window overlooking the city. So, Yellowjacket was out there.

They would keep looking. They had found their group, so they were closer to finding them as well.

They would eventually find Yellowjacket.

* * *

 _Okay, before anyone asks, the reason why Mary referred to Yellowjacket as 'Riley' was because Jill called her Riley in the last chapter. Plus, Yellowjacket wasn't wearing her yellow jacket at the time._

 _Anywyas, read and review._


	35. Smarter

_Al Drin Hoshizora: I want you to talk about the actual story. Like Antha1._

 _I am a burglar: Moving on._

 _Antha1: And I'll keep ruining everything you know about them *evil laugh*._

 _Korrasami 88: But she just got here._

 _MrScourch: Well, it's inevitable that they'll reunite, but the circumstances may not be the best._

 _Anonymous Guy: We'll find out the answers to these questions later._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Because she's a part of the team._

* * *

Yellowjacket lay asleep on the bed. Her attempts to unlock her past had taken their toll on her mental stability, and she was now putting her mind at ease by resting.

Now asleep, she let her mind drift.

* * *

 _"We have to get out of here!" Bill said as he carried an injured Riley in his arms. Jill was fighting off the wild-looking man, its mouth smeared with blood, as it swiped at her. Jill had a large knife in her hand, and she swung it at the feral to keep him from further attacking Riley._

 _Bill looked to the window, and saw more ferals crawling through the window. Using one arm, he shot at them, and they fell backwards to avoid the bullets. One man lunged at him, and Bill struck him in the jaw with his gun. The feral crashed to the ground, injured._

 _Bill set Riley onto the ground, hoping she could still walk. Riley clutched her bleeding shoulder, and limped as Bill held her hand and led her through the house towards an exit. Jill, meanwhile, shoved the wild man back, and he crashed into a table. He fell to the ground, unconscious._

 _Jill ran to rejoin Bill and Riley as they each climbed through the window and out of the house. Once they were outside, they saw the men, dressed in black, gunning down the feral people on the streets. Dozens of bodies crashed to the ground._

 _"We have to go!" Bill said, and he turned to his car. However, one feral crawled onto the car, and growled at him. The feral leaped into the air at him, but Bill aimed and shot the feral in midair. The feral crashed onto the ground right in front of Riley, who screamed in horror._

 _As bullets rang through the air, Bill led Jill and Riley onto the streets and away from the neighborhood as the fighting continued. They wanted to get as far away from the violence as possible._

 _So they ran into the woods. But they could hear the growling of the feral people as they followed them into the dark forest. The three could see dark figures, scampering through the trees._

 _"Where do we go?" Jill asked, looking through the forest._

 _"I don't know," Bill admitted. As he did, he heard Riley wheezing softly. Blood dripped from her shoulder._

 _"Mom. . ." She groaned out in pain. "Dad. . ."_

 _"We have to get her to a hospital," Bill said, feeling her hands. They were turning cold._

 _Suddenly, the three heard a loud screech, followed by a dark figure springing out of the woods at them. The three saw the feral man's pale face and fanged teeth as he lunged at them. The three dodged out of the way, but fell down a steep hill._

 _For some time, the three tumbled down the hill, until they finally came to a stop on the wet, grassy floors. Riley rolled a distance away from Bill and Jill. She got up, and started crawling away from her parents. She started coughing and gagging violently, her nails digging into the muddy ground._

 _"Riley?" Jill asked as she got to her knees. Bill got up, and looked up the hill. The ferals hadn't noticed them, and were moving on._

 _His attention was diverted to his daughter when he noticed her groaning. Her voice was starting to sound raspy, and her head was lowered so they couldn't see her face._

 _As they stared on, they noticed Riley's veins turn blue, and her skin pale._

 _". . . Riley?" Jill asked, worried._

* * *

Yellowjacket awoke with a start. She was breathing heavily, and looked around the room. She noticed that Blackjacket was snuggled in the bed next to her.

Getting out of the bed, Yellowjacket left the room and walked through the basement. She noticed that it was now morning. None of the Others were in the basement, but she could see that the two video-game remotes were on the couch.

Yellowjacket walked up the stairs and into the living room. Bill and Jill were lying on the couch, asleep. Yellowjacket stared down at them, and then looked out at the window. She sighed with relief when she saw that there were no Others nearby.

She walked up the stairs to George and Mary's group. She slowly opened the door, and saw Mary lying on the bed, reading a _Warm Bodies_ bodies. Yellowjacket covered her mouth when she saw that Mary wasn't wearing a shirt, and had only a black bra and black pants on.

Mary noticed Yellowjacket at the door, and said, "What are you doing here?" She set the book down and sat up.

Yellowjacket paused. She was trying not to stare, and slowly, she entered the room. As she looked at Mary, she remembered something that she'd been wishing to ask about the four strange people.

"Um, Mary?" Yellowjacket asked as she sat down on the bed.

"Yes, Riley?" Mary asked, setting herself up. Yellowjacket noticed that Mary's shirt was sprawled on the ground, and she looked at Mary, but not at her face. This didn't go unnoticed by Mary.

"Eyes up here, kid," Mary snapped.

"Um, I've been meaning to ask," Yellowjacket fumbled with her words. "You and the other three. . . Where are they?"

"They're always going off to hunt Freaks in the morning," Mary explained. "It's like breakfast for them. They can't start the day without doing it."

"Well, that's not what I meant to ask," Yellowjacket said. "You see, you four aren't like most of the Others. You talk a lot, even to the Freaks, you play. . . games, you read books. Why are you so different?"

Mary stared up at the ceiling for a moment. Looking back to Riley, she said, "I'm not sure how it started. We don't remember or past. I don't think any of the Others do."

"Yes?" Yellowjacket asked.

"But, when we first woke up, we were in this form," Mary explained, trying to recall the exact details. "For the first few days, the four of us were like the others. We didn't think much of anything other than catching Freaks."

"What happened?" Yellowjacket asked, intrigued. She wondered if what they had gone through was similar to what she'd gone through to induce the change in her.

"Well, I recognized my brother, George," My pointed out. "I knew he was from my past. Rob and Shelley were from our pasts, too. We don't know what role they played in it, but we knew that they were in our past. We found our names in the house, too." She picked up the novel and opened it, showing her name written in it. "Like this."

Yellowjacket shifted her eyes at that. She wondered if her name had ever been somewhere in her house, and she just hadn't looked hard enough.

"We remembered. . . parts," Mary said. "I don't know what our past was like. But I knew my brother, and the other two were in that past. That's what made us. . . smarter. We knew we read these books, and played those video-games. Those were from our past, and we remembered them. That is why we became. . . well, smarter."

Yellowjacket blinked at Mary.

"Did something like that happen to you?" Mary asked. "Did you find something from your past? Is that why you're smarter as well?"

". . . Yeah," Yellowjacket said, and she got off the bed. She wandered towards the door, and took one last look at Mary before closing it. She lay on the door, thinking to herself.

The reason the four were smart was because they recalled elements of her past. So, if she could recall elements of her own past, then maybe she could unlock her past for certain, and she'd know who she used to be.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	36. Freak

_Korrasami 88: Yeah, sure._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: I guess. The "Others" is usually what the zombies call each other._

 _MrScourch: Maybe. Pale Girl (why does everyone call her Whitedress?) and Yellowjacket's former group will be elaborated upon._

 _Burglar: Fine._

 _RileyA: Well, we'll have to continue to see._

 _Antha1: She thinks of herself as Yellowjacket, but she accepts that the others call her Riley._

 _The Batista: I don't get it._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Bring it on._

 _NexusOscura: Only time will tell._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: That's what I intend to... never mind._

 _Candlehead: Augh!_

 _Minty Zaki: Didn't you know? She's having an existential crisis!_

* * *

Jill was sprawled awkwardly on top of Bill as the two slept noiselessly on the couch. The two had spent the whole morning sound asleep after the tiresome day beforehand. Yellowjacket and Mary hadn't bothered waking them up.

Suddenly, the door slammed open and Rob burst in, shouting, "Zuul, mother-suckers!"

Bill and Jill snapped awake, shouting, "Whoa, what's going on! Is it an invasion?!" When they noticed it was just the zombies living with them, they calmed down.

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot who we were living with," Bill said, and he flopped onto the couch again. "Could you guys keep it down? We're trying to sleep."

Rob lumbered inside, followed by Shelley and George. Blackjacket was the last to enter.

"Man, you should've seen the looks on those Freaks' faces!" George said as he pulled his shoes off. "Blackjacket really got them good!" He gave a thumbs up to Blackjacket, who smiled.

Jill groaned. "I hope you guys haven't been hunting Freaks," She complained. George waved her off.

"So, did anyone prepare anything?" Rob asked as he stretched his meaty legs and rested on a different couch. George and Shelley both shrugged.

At that moment, Yellowjacket ran down the stairs, pulling Mary by the leg. Mary was in the midst of trying to put her black shirt on as Yellowjacket half-dragged her down the stairs, saying, "Look, they're back!"

"Yeah, and we had a fun morning!" George said. "You two really missed out."

"Oh, go suck a snozzberry!" Mary retorted as she walked to the kitchen to the kitchen to prepare dinner.

"Make me a sandwich while you're at it!" George shot back. Mary blew a raspberry at him, and then turned to continue dinner.

George turned to Yellowjacket, and said, "So, do you have anything interesting to say?"

Yellowjacket shrugged, and then ushered him close. He leaned in, and Yellowjacket whispered something into his ear. George then shot up, astounded.

"My sister has big _WHATS_?!" He shouted out.

"What did she say?" Mary asked from inside the kitchen. Yellowjacket immediately clasped her hand over her mouth. On the couch, Rob and Shelley covered their mouths to stifle their laughter.

"No, seriously, what did she say?" Mary asked as she pulled her shirt fully on.

"Nothing," Yellowjacket said, and whistled innocently. Her gaze then wandered to the window, and she let out a surprised gasp.

Shambling by the window was a zombie. He looked old, and thin, and his clothing was dirty and dry. He was wandering closer to the window, which Bill and Jill were right in sight of.

"What is it?" Jill asked. Yellowjacket gestured to the window. When Bill and Jill noticed the zombie, they both said, "Oh crap."

Noticing the zombie, George said, "I'll handle this." He then bolted to the door and rushed outside to where the zombie was. Bill and Jill hid on the floor to avoid being seen. Yellowjacket, Rob and Shelley rushed to the window to watch.

Outside, George was making strange hand gestures to the zombie, who gestured back. The zombie then grunted out, "Freaks?"

George waved his hands in the air and shook his head. He tapped his forehead, and said, "Thinks-" He pointed off in the distance. "-They over there."

The zombie growled and bared his teeth, and then shambled off in the direction George had pointed him off at. The moment the zombie left, George raced back into the house.

"That was a close one," Bill said. Getting up, he asked, "What was with all that weird. . . stuff you two were doing."

"The Others aren't quite brainy," George said, pointing at his head. "We learned to be able to fool them so they'd leave this cabin alone."

"What, you don't go out with the other zo- I mean, Others?" Bill asked. The four other zombies shook their heads.

"Never," Shelley stated firmly. "They think we're too weird. Too. . . freakish. We prefer to stay in the woods and hope they don't pass by. If they do, we just have to send them off. Can't act too strange around them."

Yellowjacket stared, unblinkingly, at them. She slowly nodded, and rumbled deep in her throat. It was true; the Others did think they were freakish. She remembered the way they'd stared at her and Blackjacket when they left the apartment.

It then occurred to her; if she did get her memories back, then what would happen. Would she become a Freak, like Bill and Jill, and be hunted down by the Others? What if she was hunted down by Sawbones, Ghoul and Noose?

She shifted her eyes, and suddenly, she blurted out, "I want to go home."

All eyes turned to her. "You want to what?" Bill asked.

Turning to Bill, Yellowjacket paused, then said, "Could you. . . take me to my original house. I need to see something. I need to find something to make me remember"

Jill ran up to Yellowjacket. "But there's a lot of zombies. . . I mean, people there," She said. "You could get hurt." When Yellowjacket looked uncertain, Jill said, "I can tell you your past. You were our daughter, and we loved you. You played hockey, you had a friend, you went to school-"

"I need to know," Yellowjacket interrupted. "But you can't just tell me what it is. Telling me won't do a thing. I need to see. . . feel what it is. It's the only way I'll know for certain."

George, watching from afar, said, "Well, you can count us out. City visiting really isn't our thing."

Bill rolled his eyes, then turned to Jill. Taking her by the hand, he pulled her away from Yellowjacket so that she wouldn't hear. When the two were certain that she was out of earshot, Bill said, "I'll take her."

"But it's too dangerous," Jill said.

"It's the only way to get our Riley back," Bill replied softly,brushing her hair. "I'll go alone. You stay here and watch over Blackjacket. We'll be back as soon as we can."

Jill was silent. Then, she said, "Promise me you'll bring her back," She said.

"Promise," Bill said, smiling softly. He kissed her on the lips, and said, "I love you."

The two slipped out of each other's embrace, and Bill turned to Yellowjacket. "Let's make this quick," He told her. "When we arrive, find anything you can to make you remember."

Yellowjacket nodded, and saluted.

"Roger," She said with a smile. "Let's get my memories back!"

* * *

 _Read and review._


	37. Try to Remember

_NexusOscura: Well, they've made it this far in the city and survived. They're probably taking their chances._

 _ADeckofCards1234: Well, the Andersens have proposed a truce with the four intelligent zombies. Sawbones, Ghoul and Noose are still looking for Yellowjacket. And Yellowjacket and Bill are going back to their former house._

 _MrScourch: The reason Bill and Jill are quick to trust the four zombies is because of Yellowjacket and Blackjacket. Since they've grown used to more "intelligent" zombies, they're not as wary now._

 _Js: Yellowjacket already rethought about eating them._

 _The Batista: Indeed._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Yeah, yeah, yeah, moving on._

 _Korrasami 88: Do you have anything else to say? Seriously, what is she even in danger of at this point?_

 _Burglar: How?_

 _Antha1: Um, Pale Girl isn't at the Andersen's house._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Eh, I doubt he'd do much._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Typical siblings._

* * *

Bill was driving through the woods with Yellowjacket in the backseat. Ever since they'd left the cabin, the two were heading towards the main city. Occasionally, they'd notice a zombie walking through the woods, but they took no notice. The zombies couldn't hope to catch up with a car.

Luckily, the Andersen's house wasn't that far away from the forest. Bill made a turn to the left, and he was soon in the same neighborhood as their former house.

As they drove through the streets, Yellowjacket caught sight of several of the Others wandering on the sidewalks. She felt compelled to ask Bill, "If I unlock my past, will I become like you? A Freak?"

For a while, Bill didn't respond, and Yellowjacket thought he hadn't heard her. However, he eventually said, "We're not Freaks. We're normal, human beings. If you do remember, you may be cured. You'll be normal, just like you used to be."

"What will the Others think of me?" Yellowjacket asked, nervous. "If I become like you, then what will the Others do to me."

"I'll make sure they never touch you," Bill reassured her. They neared their house, and Bill said, "We're here."

Luckily, no zombies were nearby the house, it appeared. Bill looked around to make sure that nobody was there. Suddenly, Yellowjacket pushed the door open and walked outside.

"Stay," Yellowjacket demanded to Bill.

"But I-" Bill started.

"Stay on look-out," Yellowjacket interrupted him. "If the Others are around, they won't trust me if they see you with me." She then walked towards the house.

Bill got out of the car, in spite of what Yellowjacket just said, and followed her. Yellowjacket turned to stare at him, but didn't say anything.

"You're my daughter, and I'm not letting you out of my sight," Bill told her. Yellowjacket continued to stare at him, and then opened the door. The two entered the living room.

"I haven't been in this house for over a year," Bill said, remembering the times he'd spent there. The house was dirty, smelled bad, and needed to be aired out, but Bill still felt a sense of nostalgia from being in it.

Bill noticed a busted window from where the zombies had crawled through it the last time Bill had been at the house. He narrowed his eyes at it, then turned to Yellowjacket.

"So, what do we look for?" He asked.

"Something that could make me remember," She replied. "I've been in this house for nearly a year, but I could never find anything to jog my memory."

Yellowjacket started rushing through the house, upturning couches and tables to try and find something she remembered in her past. Bill watched form afar, and turned to the window occasionally. If he saw a zombie approaching, he and Yellowjacket would be leaving whether she liked it or not.

"Bill, look what I found!" Yellowjacket shouted as she picked up a hockey stick. Bill immediately shushed her.

"Keep it down," He whispered. "You don't want the others to come, do you."

"Oh," Yellowjacket whispered, lowering the stick. "What did I do with this?"

"You played hockey, remember," Bill said. "And man, you were the greatest hockey player I have ever seen. You were so good at it. The best!"

Yellowjacket smiled. She remembered when she and Blackjacket had played hockey in the woods before, at the time they met the Others in the cabin. her eyes wandered, and she jumped and let out a scream.

"What is it?' Bill asked. It was then that he noticed the dead rat lying on the floor near Yellowjacket, the same one she'd seen when she first moved into the house. Bill secretly wondered why they never bothered to remove the thing.

"You saw that when we first came here," Bill pointed out to Yellowjacket. The pale girl shivered, and nodded slowly.

The two were broken out of their thoughts when they heard a soft growling sound coming from behind the half-open door leading to the basement. Bill froze, and Yellowjacket turned her head to the door.

"Oh, no," Bill whispered, knowing what the sound was coming from. Yellowjacket stared through the door, and could just barely see a female zombie down the stairs. She had gray skin and long, wild hair. Her claws were longer than most of the Others.

The zombie appeared to be sleeping, sprawled on the floor, a deep rumbling sound coming from her throat. Bill tried to keep as quiet as possible so as to not wake her.

"We have to leave. . . now," He said to Yellowjacket.

"But. . . my memories," She whispered back.

"They're not as important as staying alive," Bill replied. Taking Yellowjacket by the hand, the two started tip-toeing past the basement and towards the door. However, Yellowjacket stepped on a weak part of the floor, and it made a creaking sound.

The zombie's eyes snapped open, and it let out a growl. Before Bill and Yellowjacket could move, the woman flew up the stairs with remarkable speed and agility. However, Bill slammed the basement door in the zombie's face, and she went soaring back down the stairs.

"Run!" Bill shouted, and he and Yellowjacket ran towards the door. The zombie recovered quickly and tore back up the stairs after them.

Bill and Yellowjacket ran out the door, followed closely by the zombie. As they did, they saw a black car drive down the streets. However, with the zombie pursuing behind them, they took little notice.

The two ran to their own car, but the zombie was too close behind. Suddenly, Yellowjacket spun around to face the zombie, hoping to try and reason with it.

Yellowjacket blocked the zombie's path, waving her arms in the air at no. "No," She demanded towards the zombie as it tried to side-step to the left, but Yellowjacket continued to block her.

"No, no!" Yellowjacket asserted, pointing a sharp finger at the zombie.

"Riley, get back!" Bill demanded. The zombie then shoved Yellowjacket to the ground and continued towards Bill. Before it could reach him, however, a bullet rang through the air. Bill instinctively ducked. The zombie collapsed onto the ground, a bullet wound in her shoulder.

Bill let out a breath of surprise, and turned to see who had shot the zombie. Standing outside of the car on the street, was a man dressed in black. A pistol was in his gun, aimed at where the zombie had been standing a minute ago.

Yellowjacket stared at the man, her legs buckling. Her arms shook, and her teeth chattered.

It was a Freak.

The man turned to Bill, who had just gotten up off the ground. He turned to Yellowjacket. Their eyes locked for a moment. Yellowjacket briefly wondered if he would shoot her next.

Then, the man lowered his gun. Yellowjacket breathed a sigh of relief.

"Come with me if you want to live," The man said.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	38. A Man Named Joe

_Okay, I'll be honest: I didn't know WHAT movie I was referencing with that last quote. I knew I was referencing something, but I didn't know what until you all pointed it out to me. Anyways..._

 _RileyA: Refer to my above note._

 _Korrasami 88: You'll see soon._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: They just did._

 _The Batista: They just did._

 _ADeckofCards1234: There are no bandits in the story. As for the latter..._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Um, okay..._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Because those four zombies don't appear in this chapter._

 _NexusOscura: Oh, good to see you care about the main character._

 _PotterPhantomKitten: Ah, I wished I'd see you here again. Well, on the hockey stick, earlier it was mentioned that several islands were up and running. Hockey Island is definitely one of them._

 _I am a burglar: Okay..._

 _MrScourch: You know, now that you mention Meg... I have an idea!_

 _Antha1: Wrong movie._

* * *

Bill and Yellowjacket didn't know how events could transpire at such a fast pace. It seemed like only a few minutes ago that they were driving through a forest, and even less time that they'd spent searching their former house.

So why were they now passengers in the seat of a man who they didn't even know?

But they were. Bill was in the passengers seat, and Yellowjacket was in the backseat. Her head was lowered, her hands shaking. She didn't know what the Freak would do to her once they reached his destination.

"So, what's the story behind you two," The man asked. He hadn't spoken a word to them since they'd gotten into the car up until this point.

"This girl. . . she's my daughter," Bill explained, after some hesitation.

"She's pretty pale, isn't she?" The man pointed out. Yellowjacket shrunk down into her seat, her nails digging into the seat of the car. She tried to keep her growling down so he wouldn't be suspicious of her.

"Oh, that. . ." Bill asked, feeling a beat of sweat down his forehead. "That's. . . uh. . ."

"I don't go out into the sun much!" Yellowjacket shouted quickly. "More an indoor person. Especially after this infection thing happened to the city. Man, this place is crawling with zombies, am I right?"

The man craned his head over to stare at Yellowjacket, his eyebrow raised. The girl's nervous smile faded away, and she gulped.

"I was checking up on the town to see if there were more survivors," The man said as he turned back to face the front. "But I didn't think I'd actually meet any."

"Yeah. . ." Bill said, shifting his eyes. "So, where are we going?"

"Where people from all around have come to hide," The man said. "Some have even come from other cities, too."

"Really?" Bill asked, his eyebrow raised in curiosity. He couldn't wait to tell his wife about this.

"Yep, apparently things are _really_ bad in the other cities," The man pointed out, and his face briefly took on a disturbed look. Bill shared the look; he wondered just how bad things were in the other cities nearby that going to the hellhole that was San Francisco was a better option by comparison.

"We're almost there," The man said. Bill and Yellowjacket did notice that they were seeing some people on the streets. Uninfected people.

Soon, they were nearing a very large building. As they drove up close, the man stopped his car. A man stepped up to the window. Yellowjacket squinted her eyes when she saw him. Something seemed. . . _off_ about him, but he didn't quite know what.

"It looks like you found someone, Joe," The man grunted out.

The man, that Bill and Yellowjacket now knew was named Joe, nodded. The man pointed to the direction of the large building up ahead, and Joe continued driving forward. As they passed the man, Yellowjacket plastered her face against the window to stare at him. The man stared back, and he grinned at her.

Yellowjacket let out a gasp. The man had fanged teeth.

"Did you see that!" Yellowjacket shouted to Bill. "That man, he's a. . ."

"So," Joe asked, referring to Bill. What he said next made his blood run cold.

"When did your dead daughter start to think again?"

Bill's jaw dropped. Yellowjacket froze. Her mouth moved, but no words came out. She just laid back in her seat as the dread of realization filled her. She knew that her time was up.

The man knew.

"It's alright," Joe said, as if reading her thoughts. "We're not going to hurt you. We've come across a few of your. . . _types_ these past couple of days. You got nothing to fear."

Bill and Yellowjacket both let out a relieved gasp. She remembered the man she'd just seen.

"There are more of me?" She asked for confirmation. She remembered Blackjacket, and the four smart Others in the woods. Were there more of them out there as well?

"Not a lot," Joe affirmed as he stopped the car. "We don't know what's causing you guys. I, personally, think it's some sort of new breed." He unbuckled his seat-belt.

"My daughter's not a 'breed'," Bill snapped at Joe as they stepped out of the car.

"Sure thing, man," Joe said, putting his hands up. "But you got to admit, she's different from the rest. She should be able to fit in with her own kind here."

"There are more of me?!" Yellowjacket shouted, an excited smile on her face. "I want to meet them!" She raced to the building, but Joe grabbed her by the arm with a gloved hand.

"Whoa there, miss," Joe said as Yellowjacket wrenched her arm free. "There may be more of you in here, but don't get the right idea here. There's more of us, and you got to be careful. Racing in here like a maniac will get you shot. I've seen it."

Yellowjacket's hopeful smile vanished and was replaced with a gloomy grimace. "So, it really is still a building of Freaks," She mumbled to herself.

"What did you say?" Joe asked.

"Nothing," Yellowjacket said, straightening up. Joe stared at her suspiciously, then led the two towards the building. Bill and Yellowjacket couldn't help but be in awe at how massive it was. It was easily the largest building they'd ever seen.

As Joe prepared to open the door, he said, "I want you two to meet someone."

"Who?" Bill asked.

Joe turned to face them. "The boss," He said. "He may have some use for the two of you."

* * *

Ghoul, Noose and Sawbones rejoined on the streets near the building. They'd just come back from searching every area nearby, but they still hadn't found any sign of Yellowjacket.

"She's not here," Noose said. Sawbones and Ghoul glared at him, and Noose shrunk down.

Sawbones eyes glimmered with anger and frustration. He stared down at the picture of Bill, and he crushed it in his hand. When he found that man, he would tear his heart out.

He turned to Ghoul and Noose, who were both staring at him. Sawbones growled and swung his knife at the two, and they both jumped away in surprise. They cowered from it.

"Stay here," Sawbones demanded to the two. Then, he slunk off down the streets. Ghoul and Noose watched him as he vanished from view.

"Why does he have to be so scary?" Noose asked Ghoul, who shrugged in response. The two wandered away from the apartment building, and soon reached a nearby bar tavern. A few zombies were wandering in it.

Ghoul stared at the bar. She thought she recognized him from somewhere. Wandering away from Noose, she opened the door and walked into the tavern.

A few male zombies turned to gaze at her. Ghoul took no notice and sat down on one of the stools. Noose followed afterwards, trying to avoid the larger, more imposing zombies that stood around the door. He took a seat next to Ghoul.

Ignoring the staring coming from the other zombies, Ghoul closed her head and rested her head on the table.

* * *

 _ **(In Ghoul's Mind)**_

"Man, this place brings back memories," Star pointed out to the other four emotions. Star was dressed in a black dress, and was wearing black eyeliner and lipstick.

"What memories?" Disgust asked. "We ran out on those a long time ago."

"I know," Joy replied. "But I can't help but feel that I. . . know this place."

The other emotions nodded, and sighed.

They didn't notice that, behind them from within the non-functioning core memory circular tray, one of the memories was starting to glow...

* * *

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	39. The Boss

_NexusOscura: I realize I haven't been giving Sawbones and co. much attention lately._

 _MrScourch: Ghoul is referred to as that because she wore makeup that made her look ghoulish even before she was infected._

 _The Batista: No comment._

 _Burglar: Yeah, try and bypass security like that one more time._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: You will find out soon._

 _Korrasami 88: Both of those will be answered soon._

 _RileyA: I don't know yet._

 _Jacob R. Davis: You'll have to wait for the end._

 _ADeckofCards1234: If they did, they're probably getting owned by the infected by now._

 _Antha1: The Boss will not shoot Yellowjacket for being a zombie. And besides, he's after Pale Girl for the cure (don't think I'm giving away much by saying that)._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: 'That's a good one' Not really._

* * *

Bill never thought he'd see so many uninfected people since the apocalypse started in San Francisco.

He couldn't count how many normal people there were, but he knew there were hundreds, at the very least. Definitely bigger than his old group. He wondered how it had taken him so long to find them.

Yellowjacket huddled close to Bill's side, squeezing his hand. She hadn't seen so many Freaks in one place. She could see that some of them had guns. She felt a chill run down her spine.

Indeed, she could see some of the Others were there, but not a lot. They were rather pale-looking, and they were generally working away from the Freaks. Of the few Others that were with the Freaks, Yellowjacket believed that they were related.

One man walked up to them. "Hey Joe, you're back," The man said. Noticing Bill and Yellowjacket, he said, "It looks like you found some more survivors."

"Yeah, sure," Bill said, forcing a smile. It seemed that the man couldn't tell Yellowjacket was infected. Was she really that different from the rest of the Others.

"We're going to go see the Boss," Joe told the man. "He may be interested in finding out how these two survived for so long on their own."

The man nodded and pointed to a door leading upstairs. Joe nodded, and ushered Bill and Yellowjacket to follow them.

As Yellowjacket followed the two, the Others turned their gaze in her direction. Yellowjacket pretended not to notice as, one by one, the Others stopped what they were doing and turned their heads to face her. Their eyes followed her as she walked to the door.

Yellowjacket squeezed Bill's hand as they passed by. Suddenly, Yellowjacket felt clammy flesh against hers as another girl stumbled into her. In the few seconds their bodies made contact, Yellowjacket could feel the girl's skin. It was cold, like a corpse.

The other girl stumbled backwards. "Sorry," She wheezed out to Yellowjacket.

Yellowjacket froze as her eyes focused on the girl. The girl had very dull, nappy hair. She had somewhat large lips, and her jaw was always hanging open, even though she didn't talk. Her eyes were an icy blue.

She didn't know why, but she felt that she recognized the girl.

Suddenly, a woman with red hair ran up. "Please excuse my daughter," She apologized to Bill as she took the girl by the wrist. "My Margaret is always wandering off. She can't seem to stay in one place ever since she. . ."

Bill cut her off. "It's alright," He said. He nodded, and then started dragging Yellowjacket. As they continued walking, Yellowjacket continued to stare at the girl.

After they met the Boss, she knew she had to see this girl again.

* * *

"So, how did you two survive on your own for over a year?" Joe asked as the three walked up the stairs. The stairs were metal, and every footstep made a loud clanging noise.

"Oh, it's a long story," Bill said. "It wasn't just us. There's my beautiful wife, Jill. We're quite the team."

"Uh-huh," Joe replied, nodding.

"We were in a group," Bill recalled. "But when they aw our. . . daughter, we had to go. We don't know what's happened to them, but we're kind of worried."

"Oh, well we could go and find them, if you want," Joe suggested. Bill nodded, and shifted his eyes.

"Oh, you don't _have_ to," He said.

"But they're your frie-" Yellowjacket started, but Bill shushed her.

Joe made a weird face at the two, then resumed walking. "Not many people get to see the Boss up close," Joe told the two. "He mainly goes out to give speeches and orders, and whatnot. Other than that, he's holed up upstairs."

"So why are you taking us to him?" Bill asked.

"Well, I was thinking the two of you could help with a problem we've been having," Joe said. They reached the top of the stairs and were met with a dark corridors. There was a metal door, and Joe knocked on it, producing an echoing noise.

"Boss!" He shouted. "I have two people who you'd like to see."

For a moment, the two heard nothing. Joe clasped his hands together and waited. After about a minute passed, the doorknob turned, and the door slowly creaked open. A man appeared from within.

"Good to see you, Boss," Joe said, nodding.

Bill saw the man at the door, and studied him. He was younger than he expected him to be. The man looked to be in his early thirties at the oldest. He was rather tall, though, and was dressed in an entirely black trench coat and pants. He wore a black pair of sunglasses, and had sandy blonde hair.

"Who are they?" The Boss asked, referring to Bill and Yellowjacket.

"I found them in a neighborhood," Joe informed the Boss. "The girl's an intelligent one. These two have survived out there in the infested city for so long."

The Boss stared down at Yellowjacket, who got a prickly feeling in her back looking at him. The man was frowning, but she couldn't see his eyes. The Boss then looked up and said, "Come in."

Bill and Yellowjacket walked in, but Joe remained outside. Bill turned to stare at him, but Joe said nothing. He just closed the door.

Bill shrugged and followed the Boss down the dark hallways. Yellowjacket lagged behind, keeping a distance away from the Boss.

"So, is it true that you two have made it on your own?" The Boss asked Bill, who nodded.

"Well, my daughter is one of them, but she's getting better," He reassured the Boss. "You don't need to be afraid of her."

The Boss nodded. "So, what have you seen out there?" He asked him.

"Oh, nasty stuff," Bill informed him. "I've seen tons of people die, way more than a man should see. We were in a group, but I don't think they've made it." He paused, then said, "Anyways, there's me, my wife, and my little daughter Riley here."

"Any others?" The Boss asked.

Bill paused, then said, "No."

The Boss took a deep breath before speaking again. "So, how competent are you with a gun?" He asked. "How many of them can you take out?"

Bill shrugged. "When me and my wife were in the group, we did most of the brunt work. We went out and got the stuff to keep the group going. We've had to face a lot of them while doing so. I'm pretty handy with a gun, I'd say."

"Your daughter?" The Boss asked. "What the the Others think of her?"

Yellowjacket blinked. This man hadn't referred to them as 'zombies'? She said nothing, though.

Bill thought for a moment. "They seem. . . strange regarding her," He said. "My Riley has a way with them. She can convince some of them not to attack us. Some of them."

"What do you mean?" The Boss asked for details.

"There was this one zombie boy," Bill recalled. "My daughter communicates with him, and he listens to her. He doesn't seem to like us, but he does what she says. And there were these four other zombies. They were also smart. My daughter communicates with them to, to an extent."

Yellowjacket could tell Bill was omitting details. She didn't know why, though.

"So your daughter can communicate with the Others?" The Boss asked. Bill rubbed the back of his head, and then said, "I think."

The Boss smiled a bit. "Good, because I might have a job for her," He said.

Bill raised his eyebrow. "What job are you talking about?" He asked.

The Boss waved for them to follow him as he led them to a small room. Once they were inside, the Boss sat down at a table, and began spreading out multiple pictures.

Bill stared at the photos. His eyes widened. They were the photos of the picture he'd seen of the sick girl at the hospital. She was wearing the same white dress.

Yellowjacket noticed the pictures, too. When she saw the girl in the picture, she let out a gasp and ducked behind Bill. She recognized the girl in the photo.

She was the girl she and Blackjacket had seen in the apartment.

"This girl," The Boss informed them. "This right here is the Patient Zero."

Bill raised an eyebrow. "You mind telling me what that is?" He asked him.

"She's the cause of it all," The Boss explained. "She's the first. She's the one who's responsible for why the city is the way it is now. She's the first infected person. And we've been looking for her."

"Why?" Bill asked.

"Because we think she could be the key to finding the cure," The Boss informed the two. "If we find the first zombie, we can also find the source of the virus that's infected your daughter. We might be able to find a way to cure this infected city, and the places beyond that."

"Do you know this girl?" Bill asked.

"I've sent several men to find her, but most of them don't come back," The Boss said, not answering Bill's question. "She's very dangerous. She's a killer."

Yellowjacket flashed back to when she'd seen the girl, tearing into the flesh of that man in the apartment. She shuddered. Before either Bill or the Boss could stop her, Yellowjacket covered her mouth and tore out of the room. The two men soon heard the sound of barfing coming from outside.

The Boss turned to Bill. "Most of those men aren't equipped for handling this monster," He said. "But you might be different."

"Wait, you're sending ME after her?" Bill asked, incredulous. "Are you crazy? I'm dead if I go out there."

"But you have her," The Boss pointed out, motioning to where Yellowjacket was, outside the door. "She can communicate with the Others. She may be able to have some level of contact with the Patient Zero, at least enough that you can catch her."

Bill was silent, unsure.

The Boss sighed. "Look, I know it's difficult," He said. "But finding Patient Zero could mean we can find a cure. We can bring everyone back. We can bring your daughter back. She'll be normal. It'll be just like when she was really alive."

That caught Bill's attention. "It'll be just like things were?" He asked.

The Boss nodded. "If only you bring Patient Zero back," He said. "I want her alive. Bring her back alive, and if I'm right, in a few months time, it'll be like this apocalypse never happened."

Bill's eyes lit up at that. He turned to Yellowjacket, who stood outside. Even though she was getting smarter, she was till wandering off in the distance. He could tell her mind wasn't there at the moment.

She wasn't truly cured.

* * *

 _ **(In Bill's Mind)**_

"I can't believe we're actually considering this," Disgust said vehemently. "Are we actually considering using our daughter to find this. . . this thing?"

"The Boss may have a point," Joy pointed out, stroking his mustache. "If we can find the source, we may be able to find a cure. And our Riley will be back!"

"Or she could be taken away forever," Sadness interjected. "This Patient Zero sounds like really bad news."

"But Riley can talk to the zombies, right?" Fear added. "She can, right?"

"But those are the smart zombies," Disgust argued. "I don't think she can talk with the normal ones? At least, I don't think we've seen it happen."

"What does Anger have to say?" Fear asked. The other emotions turned to Anger, who hadn't said a word during the whole argument. He sat, silent, clearly deep in thought.

"If we do this," Anger said slowly. "We run the risk of dying, and leaving the world without our wife and daughter."

"Exactly," Disgust said, pointing to Anger. "See, even he agrees."

"But," Anger added.

"Oh, crap," Disgust said, his relief fading. "Here we go."

"If we do this, and succeed," Anger continued. "We have a shot at curing this whole city. We have a shot at curing Riley."

"But she's curing herself!" Sadness pointed out to Anger. "Look at her. She talks, she thinks, she plays hockey! Our Riley IS coming back!"

"Is she?" Anger asked. "Is she really a human, or is she a zombie? Which side is she really leaning on. If we can find this cure, that won't be a debate anymore! We might just have to take the risk!"

This time, the other emotions said nothing, and waited for Anger to continue.

"The pros outweigh the cons," Anger said. "We can't go on like this. We can't spend the rest of our lives hiding, looking over our shoulders to make sure we're not eaten by most of the population. Someday, we'll die, and this world will be stuck in this perpetual state of ruin until the sun dies."

Anger stood out of his seat. "We need to grasp for a world that our daughter can look forward to. A world that everyone can look forward to."

The other emotions stared at him. Anger turned to face them.

"You know what we have to do."

* * *

"Um, hello?" The Boss asked Bill, who had been staring off into space for three minutes. When Bill didn't respond, Boss snapped his fingers in front of Bill's eyes, snapping him back to reality.

"We'll do it," Bill said. "But bring some help with us, just in case things go south."

"Whatever you ask, man," The Boss said, smiling. "If it bring us close to finding her, it's yours."

"Thank you," Bill said, relieved. He turned to Yellowjacket, who was standing out the door. Then, Bill frowned.

He didn't want to put his daughter in danger. But, he knew, this may be his best shot at saving her as well.

* * *

Sawbones scampered towards his home. He didn't live with Ghoul and Noose; he only met up with them when they were on the hunt.

In recent days, he'd stopped going back since he'd been out looking for Yellowjacket. But as he headed home, he wondered why he hadn't thought of this sooner.

He reached his destination. It was a large building, with giant steel gates. Sawbones could bypass it easily. Using his claws, he climbed up the walls and into the yard. Once in the yard, he raced to the barred walls.

One of the walls had a large hole in it. Sawbones dashed inside it, and raced through all of the barred doors. Within the barred doors were Others, all of them dressed in orange.

The Others sprang up as they noticed Sawbones. They raced to the bars, letting out howls and animalistic shrieks as they stretched out their arms at him. Sawbones ignored them.

Sawbones stopped at one door, containing three particular Others. The three were covered in scars, courtesy of Sawbones' knives.

Sawbones pulled the gates open, and the three of them sprang to their feet. They raced up to him to hear what he had to say.

"Yellowjacket. . ." Sawbones growled out to them. He knew that they were aware of her. He'd once taken Ghoul, Noose and Yellowjacket to his home to meet the Others trapped there.

He didn't know why, but they'd pleaded to never take him back once they'd left.

Sawbones pulled out the picture of Bill. Holding it out to the Others, he growled. "He is with Yellowjacket. Find the Freak! Find Yellowjacket!"

The Others grunted in agreement, and they dashed down the hallways and out the hole in the wall. They raced out into the city.

Sawbones followed them. These Others were different. They'd been trapped from civilization for so long that they were like animals. They thought like animals, ones that he could control.

They'd be able to find Yellowjacket for him

And the man Sawbones wished to kill.

* * *

 _Read and review. Longest chapter, BTW._


	40. Finding Patient Zero

_The Batista: No one's really at the hospital._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Uh-huh._

 _NexusOscura: Bill (and Jill) freezing when the emotions are having heated debates was done for comedy, and to ask what's going on in the real world while they're emotions are busy talking._

 _ADeckofCards1234: Would've liked your opinions on the chapter itself, but alright._

 _Antha1: Glad people are calling her Pale Girl instead of Whitedress. But no, I doubt she's in the mood to talk to them._

 _RileyA: Sure._

 _Burglar: Seriously, dude?_

 _Korrasami 88: Yeah, sure._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Are you sure?_

 _MrScourch: The group just formed there, okay? You mean the prison zombies will track Bill to the cabin?_

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: He doesn't._

* * *

Bill sat in the passengers seat of the large green military truck as Joe drove it through the empty streets. Several men with tranquilizer guns were sitting in the back. Yellowjacket, on the other hand, was sitting in the rear of the truck.

"So, this is where she is, right?" Bill asked Joe for confirmation.

"We started pinpointing which direction she would go to when we noticed how the other zombies clear out when she arrives," Joe informed Bill. "Whenever she arrives at a certain location, she scares the other zombies off. That's what lets us know she's there."

Bill nodded. It was then that he recognized the area they were going to.

"Hey, that's where we used to live!" Bill pointed out, and was shushed by the rest of the group.

"Do you want Patient Zero to hear us?" Joe whispered harshly to him. "If she knows we're coming, we'll lose her, or worse, lose our lives."

"Sorry," Bill whispered back. "Me, my wife and my group were staying up in that apartment. We did notice that there were fewer zombies around recently."

"Then she is here," Joe said, and pulled out his tranquilizer. He then drove the truck behind a building.

Joe turned his head and said, "Hey kid, it's your time to shine."

In the rear of the truck, Yellowjacket shivered. She remembered Patient Zero, and the way she'd torn that man apart, and then chased her and Blackjacket out of the building. She doubted that the feral girl would listen to her now.

However, she didn't want to disappoint Bill. She nervously exited the rear, and walked up to the windowsill, and stared at Bill and Joe.

Joe shooed her off, while Bill just gave a nod for encouragement. Yellowjacket gulped, took in a deep breath, and then continued forward.

As Bill watched Yellowjacket walk, he turned to Joe and asked, "So, what's the plan?"

"Oh, your daughter will lure out the Patient Zero," Joe explained to him. "When she comes out of hiding, we can get a good shot at her. Hopefully, the Patient Zero doesn't rip your daughter to shreds before that happens."

Bill froze, and turned to where Yellowjacket was walking.

"Don't worry, she'll be fine," Joe reassured him. "But in the likely chance that Patient Zero doesn't trust her, then we're all screwed."

"And with all the men Patient Zero has killed," One man added. ". . .Eh, I'm sure she can handle it."

Bill turned to the man, and opened his mouth to say something.

"Don't say anything," The man snapped at him.

Meanwhile, Yellowjacket had been walking through the empty streets. She scanned the areas around her, trying to stay on alert. She knew she couldn't allow the Patient Zero to sneak up behind her.

Taking to the sidewalks, Yellowjacket passed by an alley, and stopped when she smelt rotting flesh. Turning around, she gasped when she saw a detached arm lying in the alley. She knew instantly that it was the arm of the man Patient Zero had killed.

Yellowjacket turned around, and let out a howl to draw the Patient Zero's attention. There was silence.

Yellowjacket let out a louder howl, and she was met with a piercing hiss. She instinctively dropped onto the ground and covered her ears. Her head whipped around in the direction of the hiss.

She knew that the Patient Zero had heard her. It appeared her howls had disturbed her.

Yellowjacket stared at a small store with several smashed windows. Through the windows, she could see movement within the store. A dark figure was moving from within the store, and it was nearing the window.

Yellowjacket steeled herself to press forward towards the store to get a better look. The figure's head was whirling around curiously in the store, and it froze when it saw Yellowjacket.

Yellowjacket stayed still, waiting for the figure to reveal itself. The figure in the dark paused, then it crawled towards the window. Yellowjacket took a step back as the figure slunk through the broken windows and out onto the sidewalk, and revealed itself to Yellowjacket.

Yellowjacket blinked in perplexity. The creature was nothing but a dog.

The dog stared at her, its tongue hanging out of its jaw. It panted as it stared at her, before suddenly letting out a high-pitched bark and scampering down the street. Yellowjacket watched as it vanished from view.

Yellowjacket, in spite of herself, let out a small chuckle at how she'd been so frightened over nothing. She covered her mouth to keep from laughing out loud. How silly she had been, to thing that the dog was Patient Zero.

 _"Grah."_

And then the laughing stopped. Yellowjacket heard the growl. But it wasn't coming from the store.

It was coming from right behind her.

Slowly, she turned around, knees buckling, sweat dripping from her forehead, as she faced what was behind her. Her teeth chattered and her fingers twitched.

When she turned around, she saw no dog.

Dead, lifeless eyes. Stringy hair stretched over dark facial features. A small jaw hanging open. Bony arms ending with long claws as sharp as butcher knives. A pale dress that blew in the wind.

It was Patient Zero.

Pale Girl.

* * *

 _A female bartender in her late twenties was handing out drinks to a group of young men. She was dressed all in black, with sleeveless arms, her black hair in a bun._

 _As the woman passed out the drinks to each man, being careful not to mix the drinks up, she saw all the men with their friends, men with their girlfriends. People laughing with each other, having a good time. She paused for a moment._

 _"Hey, lady, am I getting my beer or what?" One of the men asked impatiently. The woman snapped back to reality and immediately slid the drink over to the man. The drink spilled._

 _"Sorry," The woman said, pulling some fallen strands of her hair from her eyes, lined with eye shadow. She wished she wasn't such a screw-up._

 _As the men left with their drinks, the woman whispered, "Damn, I wish I could hang out with somebody my age."_

 _Unfortunately, one particularly drunk, overweight man heard her, and belched out, "Hey, why don't you hang out with me. I'll show you a party!"_

 _The woman struck out the middle finger at her. She rested her elbows on the table as she waited for someone else to order a drink. As she did, she saw a man pass by the bar, carrying his young daughter in his arms._

 _The woman eyed the man with a tinge of envy._

 _How she wished she could have a daughter of her own._

 _She pushed the thought out of her mind. How could she support a daughter when she was a college drop-out, working a low paying job at a bar tavern with only barely enough money to support living on her own?_

 _She knew she had to shove the thought out into her subconscious. She knew it was better to focus on reality, rather than hope for something that she knew wouldn't happen._

 _It was hopeless._

Ghoul woke up from her sleep. Noose was still sitting at her side, not saying a word. Ghoul stared at him, then turned around to see all of the zombies in the bar.

Another zombie entered the bar. Ghoul recognized him instantly.

It was one of the men from the apartment she, Noose and Sawbones had infiltrated not long before. The man lumbered into the bar tavern, and stopped. He turned and stared at Ghoul and Noose.

He recognized them.

The man glared at the two, and mouthed something at them. Then he continued shambling through the tavern.

Ghoul shrugged and was about to go back to sleep when she smelled something. Something new. Something fresh.

She grabbed Noose's arm and shook him, directing his attention to her.

"Freaks," She whispered to him. "They're here. We have to go find them!"

She got up and ran towards the door, with Noose slowly getting up and jogging after her, trying to keep up with the younger and faster Ghoul.

"Wait for me!" He called out as he raced after her.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	41. Catching Patient Zero

_Guest: Uh-huh._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora:...Seriously? You didn't know? I made it beyond obvious that Pale Girl was Patient Zero._

 _Korrasami 88: Looks like I was wrong. Some people still don't know the correct name for the character._

 _NexusOscura: Well, if she runs, then she failed the mission._

 _The Batista: Plot armor. That's the key to survival._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: How?_

 _MrScourch: You may be disappointed._

 _Burglar: What, did you run out of things to steal?_

 _Antha1: Yes, she was._

 _Creamy Buttercap:...What?_

 _Jacob R. Davis: Eh, IDK._

* * *

Yellowjacket stared into the bitter eyes of the Pale Girl, their gazes locked. The eyes of the dead, staring into the eyes of one who was somewhere in-between.

This was the second time Yellowjacket had seen Pale Girl, but it was only now that she could get a good look at the girl. Pale Girl was obviously younger, probably eleven at the oldest. She was a few inches shorter than Yellowjacket. Her skin was hard and clammy, and she had long fingers that stretched into sharp claws, like knives. None of the Others had claws like those.

Riley stood still, facing Pale Girl. She knew, without a doubt, that this. . . _thing_ was Patient Zero.

Pale Girl was silent, and stood still as well. The only movements were her lifeless eyes, making occasional shifts in the direction they were staring at, and her claws, that were twitching erratically, as if preparing to strike.

Pale Girl's mouth was a thin line, and it almost looked like she was pouting. Her eyes held an air of skepticism, as if she doubted something about Yellowjacket.

Yellowjacket knew that she couldn't keep going on being silent. If she continued to stare Pale Girl in the eye, the other girl may see it as a sign of aggression, or a challenge.

So, she spoke.

"I. . . Yellowjacket," She said, pointing to herself. She hoped Pale Girl would respond. Hoped that she could communicate as well.

Pale Girl's face twitched, and she surged forward. Yellowjacket instinctively stepped backwards as Pale Girl leaned in towards Yellowjacket's face until they were almost touching. She stopped when their noses were an inch away.

Pale Girl's knife-like claws grasped the back of Yellowjacket's neck, holding her still. Pale Girl brought her nose through Yellowjacket's face and hair, sniffing her. Yellowjacket stood as still as she could, shutting her eyes and letting out a little whine. She could feel Pale Girl's fingers pricking her skin.

Pale Girl brought her head down to Yellowjacket's neck. Yellowjacket took the opportunity to open her eyes and peak to the left to where Bill and the others were. She caught sight of them, sneaking out of the truck and preparing to take aim.

Suddenly, Pale Girl let out a confused gasp, and jumped away from Yellowjacket. She landed on all fours, staring at Yellowjacket with confusion. She then sneezed, and pinched her nose.

Yellowjacket stood frozen. What had happened?

Pale Girl eyed her suspiciously, and removed her claws from her nose.

"Frrrreeeaaa-" She hissed at her.

Then, the two heard the sound of a gun being cocked. Yellowjacket's blood ran cold as she saw Pale Girl's head snap in the direction of the men. Then, Pale Girl let out a shriek and pounced at Yellowjacket, knocking her to the floor. Then, she scampered towards the men.

"She's coming!" One man shouted, and one fired a dart at Pale Girl. The pale child dodged out of the way, and pounced towards the men. They scattered to avoid her, her claws tearing into one man's back. She spun around, and her claws slashed his throat. He dropped lifelessly to the ground.

"No!" Yellowjacket shouted, and she ran off to stop her.

Pale Girl swiped at one man, knocking him back. From behind her, Joe took aim and quickly fired, but his aiming was off and the dart ripping through Pale Girl's dress.

The girl whipped around and lunged, but Bill dove into her path. His arms shot out and grabbed Pale Girl by the wrists, catching her mid-air. Pale Girl immediately started thrashing and kicking in Bill's grip. Her feet stretched out and pushed at Bill's chest, but he held on.

Pale Girl hissed and started to strain in his grip. One man stumbled to his feet, but Pale Girl kicked him in the chin. His head snapped up, and he crashed back down, unconscious.

Yellowjacket dove through the air and tackled Pale Girl, and the two crashed onto the sidewalk. The two zombies wrestled with each other on the ground, rolling over each other. Yellowjacket struggled to avoid Pale Girl's long claws and fanged teeth.

Bill watched the two from afar, and picked up the dead man's tranquilizer gun. He took aim at Pale Girl, who had Yellowjacket pinned, but suddenly, Yellowjacket rolled atop of Pale Girl.

"No," Bill whispered, the gun trembling in his hands as he struggled to aim. Each time he managed to get a shot at Pale Girl, Yellowjacket blocked his aim.

"Move, one of you, move," Bill whispered, directing the gun to fix his aim on the Patient Zero.

"Shoot, or you'll lose your daughter!" Joe shouted at Bill.

Bill aimed the gun, closed his eyes, and fired.

There was a howl of agony, followed by the sound of someone collapsing. Bill kept his eyes closed, not wanting to open them and see that he'd hit the wrong girl.

". . . You shot her," Joe said from behind him, surprised. Bill kept his eyes closed, fearing the worst. What did he mean by, 'her'?

"Bill!" Joe said, this time ecstatic. "You did it! You got her!"

Bill's eyes snapped open, and he saw Pale Girl lying on the ground, face-first, the syringe in her neck. She was lying on Yellowjacket, who was too scared to try and move off of her. He eyes were closed shut.

Bill immediately broke into a relieved smile. "Riley, we did it!" He told her. "We got her!"

Yellowjacket opened her eyes, and rolled her head to face Bill. She then shoved Pale Girl's limp body off of her, and scrambled to her feet. She ran to Bill and hugged him, breathing heavily.

"It's okay, you're alright," Bill reassured her. "We did it."

Joe walked up to Pale Girl's unconscious body, and shoved her over so she was lying on her back. Her head was rolled to the side, her hair matted on the ground. Her mouth was hanging open, and her eyes were closed.

"Wait 'til the Boss sees this," Joe told the others. "We did it! We finally did it!"

Yellowjacket smiled softly, relieved. But then, she heard a voice that she recognized.

"Yellowjacket!"

* * *

Ghoul had been walking with Noose towards where the Freaks were located. She'd slowed down so he'd catch up with her, and the two were walking side-by-side.

"So, what do we do hen we see the Freaks?" Noose asked. "Since Sawbones isn't here."

Ghoul shrugged. "I don't know," She said. Then, she smiled and said, "Hey, remember when it was just you and me, those first few weeks. Remember when we first met Yellowjacket?"

"Yeah, we first met her in that forest," Noose recalled, snapping his fingers. "Near the neighborhood. There were so many Freaks there."

Ghoul nodded. "It was a good thing we got to her before the Freaks did," She said. "I remember it so clearly."

"I can see her now," Noose said, standing still.

"Yep, it's one of the few things I remember so clear-"

"No, seriously," Noose said, and pointed down the street. "I can see her now."

". . .What?" Ghoul said, and snapped her head to where Noose was pointing. There, she saw Yellowjacket, surrounded by several Freaks. She could just barely make out one man carrying a smaller, paler girl into a large truck.

Ghoul gasped. "Yellowjacket," She whispered. Without thinking clearly, she ran off down the street, and shouted, "Yellowjacket!"

She saw Yellowjacket's smile fade, and her head turn to Ghoul's direction. Her eyes went as wide as saucers.

"Riley," Ghoul heard one Freak say from within the truck, and she recognized him as the man Sawbones was after. She stopped running.

Ghoul expected Yellowjacket to run into her arms. Instead, she was surprised when Yellowjacket hesitated. Then, Yellowjacket bolted towards the truck and jumped into the rear. Ghoul instantly resumed running.

"Yellowjacket!" She shouted, but her cries were drowned out by the sounds of the truck's engines turning on. Instantly, the truck sped down the street.

Ghoul caught one last look at Yellowjacket as she stared back at her. She could see in her eyes a sorrowful glance. Yellowjacket said nothing, but her gaze said it all.

 _I'm sorry._

Then, the truck vanished from view. Ghoul tried to run after it, but after a while, she knew it was hopeless. She collapsed onto the street, her hair wild. She breathed heavily as she stared at where the truck had gone.

Noose arrived soon afterwards, out of breath. He hadn't seen exactly what happened.

"What's going on?" He asked, doubling over as he tried to catch his breath.

Ghoul choked, and then she responded.

"We lost her."

* * *

 _Read and review._


	42. Hideout

_Korrasami 88:...She did stop chasing her._

 _NexusOscura: Well, let's face it: if Yellowjacket and Ghoul had a proper reunion, Ghoul would probably have gotten shot._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Pale Girl's not dead. She's unconscious._

 _Burglar: Uh-huh._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: No, unless you want a zombie apocalypse there, too._

 _Anonymous Guy: No, she's not finished._

 _MrScourch: You'll find all these things out._

 _Antha1: Huh, I never took Pale Girl shoving Yellowjacket as trying to save her. The other zombies mainly leave because Pale Girl tends to act hostile towards them._

 _RileyA: It could mean anything._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Dude, she's not dead._

 _Note: Don't know why I'm saying this now, but just to give you a fair warning: This is going to be a LONG story._

* * *

Yellowjacket's let her mind go adrift in the following events. She sat in the rear of the truck as it drove back to the Freak hideout. Pale Girl was dumped in the rear end with her, none of the men willing to hold onto her.

Yellowjacket watched Pale Girl's unconscious body, half-expecting her to suddenly pounce into the air and rip her to shreds. However, it appeared the tranquilizer had effected her. She did not stir at all.

Yellowjacket thought about Ghoul. She had almost forgotten how the woman looked like, until she'd seen her now. To think, they had been so close to reuniting, and at the same time, so far away.

"We're here!" The statement cut through Yellowjacket's thoughts like a blade. Turning her head forth, she found that they were parked at the hideout center.

Joe got out of the truck. "Wait until the Boss sees this," He told the others as he lightly jabbed Pale Girl's limp arm with his gun. "We finally got her."

As two men picked Pale Girl up and carried her to the hideout, Yellowjacket followed close behind, an anxious look on her face. Now that they had the Patient Zero, what did they intend to do with her?

Bill held Yellowjacket's hand as they followed the men into the building. The moment they were inside, one guy shouted out to everyone, "We got her!"

All heads turned to the group as the men presented the tranquilized Pale Girl to everyone present. Yellowjacket saw looks of awe as they set eyes on Patient Zero. Most of them had never been this close to her.

Yellowjacket recognized the red-headed girl, who she thought was named "Margaret", standing next to her mother. However, she was distracted when the doors above opened, and the Boss strode out onto the balcony above. He stared down at the group.

"You found her?" He asked, for confirmation. All eyes gazed up at him. Yellowjacket shrunk down as his gaze wandered upon her.

Joe carried Pale Girl and lifted her into the air for the Boss to see. His eyes were concealed by his glasses, so Yellowjacket could not see his expression. All she saw was his mouth stretch out, but not into a smile.

"Bring her up to me," He ordered, and turned to leave.

Joe shrunk down a bit, then carried Pale Girl towards the metal doors. He opened it, and vanished into the darkness. Then, the doors slammed shut, shaking the whole building. Just like that, the Boss, Joe, and Pale Girl were all gone.

Bill stared up at the balcony where the Boss was. Turning to one of the men, he asked, "What do you think will happen?"

The man shrugged. "The Boss doesn't come out often," He explained. "Hopefully, he'll work things out."

Yellowjacket ignored the conversation. She wandered away, through the dozens of people. Most of them avoided her as she passed by. Yellowjacket, herself, was still uncomfortable being in the presence of so many Freaks. Especially those with guns.

So it was then that she encountered "Margaret". She found her sitting on the floor, her mouth hanging open, a groaning sound being omitted. Her eyes looked dizzy and unfocused, and her legs were spread out.

Yellowjacket sat down next to her, and handed her a small candy bar she'd found. Margaret didn't notice.

"Hey," Yellowjacket said, and Margaret turned in her direction.

"Hi," Margaret responded. Yellowjacket couldn't shake the feeling that she knew this girl.

"Want to talk?" Yellowjacket asked, a hopeful smile on her face.

She got no reply.

* * *

Back at the cabin, Jill had lost all patience.

"They have been out there for WAY too long!" She shouted, getting up from the couch. The Others all clamped their hands over their ears.

"I'm going out there," Jill told the Others. "They must have gotten into trouble." She picked up a gun and prepared to head out into the forest.

"The Others are out there," Shelley warned her. "If they found Bill and Riley, it's probably too late already. I'd suggest you stay here, where it's safe."

Jill whirled around on the Others. "Don't you tell me what I can or cannot do!" She snapped at them. "I lost my daughter once; I'm not losing her again!"

The Others stepped back, including Blackjacket, who raised his hands in defense. There was a chilling silence before Jill spoke again.

"Now I don't care whether you decide to stay here or join me," She told them. "But I'm done waiting. I'm going out there myself."

The Others stood and watched as Jill passed through the door and vanished into the forest outside.

The moment she was gone, George said, "Well, I guess we have to go after her."

"But I hate going to the city," Mary whined.

"No, George has a point," Rob said as he got out of the chair. "We have to do the right thing here."

"Coem on, let's go," George said, leading the Others out the door.

"You suck," Mary said bitterly.

"At least I don't swallow," George retorted. Mary's face went red.

The group exited the house, and stopped when they found that Jill hadn't even left. She was standing at the door, her arms folded and a sly look on her face.

"Well, look who decided to come along," She said, smirking. "I knew I didn't have to wait long."

"Sure thing, grandma," Mary said as she hugged herself and walked past her.

"Grandma, eh?" Jill said, and lightly shoved Mary as the group walked onto the pathway through the woods. Blackjacket let out a small laugh.

However, as they walked through the forest, they didn't notice three figures dressed in orange watching them with dull, lifeless eyes.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	43. Binded

_Korrasami 88: Seriously, do you pay attention? They were introduced in chapter 39._

 _NexusOscura: I truly don't know why Jill was called 'Grandma' in the film. And things actually haven't quite 'calmed down' for the first group, either._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: *sigh* They are the prisoner zombies._

 _Antha1: Well, for one thing, Jill isn't there, so she can't recognize Margaret if she hasn't even seen her. And two, it's been quite some time since the last time he saw her (I don't think I'm giving away a spoiler by revealing Margaret's identity), and with all that's happened, I don't think Meg's appearance is Bill's main priority at this point._

 _Burglar: Uh-huh._

 _RileyA: Oh, good to know._

 _MrScourch: Well, Margaret wasn't given the name by a zombie, so that may be a factor (Yellowjacket, Sawbones, etc. got the names from other, well, Others). And the four zombies may technically hunt Freaks still, but they do still have a conscience. Besides, they know YJ will be pretty mad if she finds out they just let Jill go off on her own._

 _The Batista: To find YJ and Bill._

* * *

The Freak and the five Others behind her had been walking through the forest for several minutes. Since Bill and Yellowjacket had taken the car, they had to walk the whole way to the city.

"George, this is getting really freaky," Mary whined to her twin brother. "Do you even know the directions to the city?"

"Of course I do," George reassured his sister, waving her off. "Though we'd probably get there faster if she wasn't slowing us down."

"I am not slowing you down," Jill snapped at the Others, even though she knew it was true. The Others had been dashing through the forest nimbly, while Jill had been struggling to keep up with them. She found it somewhat odd that she, a human, was having trouble keeping up with zombies.

"Do you think there are more Others out there?" Blackjacket whispered to Jill. As Jill had been having trouble keeping up with the Others, Blackjacket had been having difficulty keeping up with her, so she had to slow down and walk next to him, increasing the distance between them and the four Others.

Despite the distance, Shelley heard him.

"Oh come one, we haven't seen any Others in hours," She told him. "Kind of weird, actually. Wonder where they all went."

The group paused. In their silence, they couldn't shake the feeling they were being followed.

"I think this walk may be turning dangerous," Rob pointed out. "There are probably Freaks out there, and there's a lot of ground to cover before we get to the city."

The group turned to face him, a little tense.

"So, with that in mind, we should probably. . ." Rob said. ". . . Stick together for safety."

The group's eyes all widened at what he'd said. "Oh, really?" Mary asked, a little elated. "Wow, that's great-"

"Oh, and Mary should probably scout the area around us a bit," George added, stifling a smirk.

"You shut your mouth!" Mary suddenly shouted at him, pointing a clawed finger in her brother's direction.

"So, who wants Mary to scout?" Blackjacket innocently asked. Instantly, all the adults put up their hands. Mary's jaw dropped.

". . . F-F-Fine!" She shouted at them, wandering a distance away from the group. "I'll have you know I'm a lot stronger than you thin-" She was cut off when she tripped on a log blocking her path, sending her tumbling into a mud puddle.

"Oh, look," George said sarcastically. "The strong girl just landed flat on her flat fanny."

Mary sat up, her lip quivering in anger. "It's not fla. . . shut up!"

"Oh no, Mary's throwing a tantrum," Shelley teased. "Do you need a shoulder to cry on, little baby?"

"More like a face to punch in!" Mary retorted. "Probably would be an improvement!"

"Hey, don't call me ugly!" Shelley shouted, offended.

"Oh, then how about floozy?!"

"Bimhoe!"

"Hussy!"

"Hey, knock it off!" Jill intervened, causing all eyes to turn to her. "For goodness sake, is this how zombies act when they don't have a Freak around to munch on?!"

"More like how teenage girls act," Rob whispered.

"I'm not a teenager," Shelley snapped, folding her arms and holding her chin high. "I'm a grown woman."

"Then act like one!" Jill shouted at them.

The group was distracted from their arguing when they heard the sound of something, or someone, dropping onto the ground. From the sound, a creature had dropped from the trees and landed on the ground.

". . . Did you hear that?" Jill asked, and instinctively reached for her gun. The Others looked around, claws extended.

Shelley caught sight of a bony-looking creature, obscured in darkness, moving through the trees and branches and encircling the group. She hissed in it's direction.

Suddenly, another creature dropped from the trees and onto the marshy group, even closer to the ground. It lumbered out of the darkness, revealing a scarred, wiry man.

George squinted into the man's eyes. These weren't the eyes of a normal Freak; normal Freaks had dead, lifeless eyes.

This one's eyes were still dead, but there was almost animalistic, primal nature in it. He noticed that there were several scars in the man's cranial bones, particularly near the brain.

A third, equally scarred pale man appeared from the shadows. He was grunting aggressively, like a pig almost. His back was arched as he approached.

The three Others surrounded the large group. The group was trapped; even though they had the trio of Others outnumbered, they still didn't know how to deal with the situation.

Eventually, George tied to mimic the Other's movements. He started growling, "Freak, there!" Pointing off into the distance.

Suddenly, one of the Other swiped at George's hand, causing him to recoil. The pale man growled at him, his fangs out. It then occurred to George that they'd seen Jill, and recognized that she was a Freak.

"Okay then, looks like this isn't going to work," He whispered to himself. He didn't have time to think of much options.

George spun around to the group, which was huddled close to each other.

"Run."

That was all he said. And they didn't need to be told twice.

* * *

Yellowjacket and Margaret walked side by side, their arms slung over each other's shoulders as they balanced each other. Yellowjacket felt that she recognized this, somehow.

"When did you come here?" Yellowjacket asked Margaret as they passed by men with weapons. They avoided them.

"A year ago," Margaret explained. "My mom took me here after the-" She waved her free arm in the air spastically. "-Happened. They say I'm a freak, by zombie standards. Don't know what that means?"

Yellowjacket squinted her eye. Suddenly, they were the Freaks?

"How did you get smart?" Yellowjacket asked interrogatively. She wanted information from the Other that almost matched her in intelligence, and how she'd achieved it.

Margaret shrugged her free arm. "All I know is that I passed out," She recalled, shifting her eyes as she tried to remember. "When I woke up, my mommy was there. I remembered her from the moment I awoke."

Yellowjacket narrowed her eyes a bit at that, but said nothing.

"I remembered her, and she said my name was 'Margaret'," The girl continued. "She said I had a nickname, and a friend, but I didn't remember those. I don't remember where I'm from, either."

Yellowjacket used her own free arm to gesture, to make her continue.

"My mommy brought me here," Margaret explained. "The Boss moved the "normal" people here. Sometimes, another "freaky" person comes here. They've been growing quite a bit, I think."

Yellowjacket paused. Mary had told her that she was smarter because she remembered things. Now Margaret had told her the same thing. And she remembered Bill and Jill, just not quite what role they played in her past.

Her thoughts were silenced when the two heard a deafening screech coming from in the upper section of the building. An agonizing screech that resonated through the building. Everyone spun around at the screech, and some tried to cover their ears to drown out the noise.

"What is that?" Yellowjacket asked Margaret.

Margaret had her hands over her ears. "I don't know," She said, her voice bordering on panicking. "You think that's Patient Zero, or whatever the Boss calls her."

It definitely sounded like her, Yellowjacket noted.

After they'd brought Pale Girl back in, Yellowjacket had hoped to keep her distance from the lethal zombie as much as possible.

Yet, that screaming. . . that didn't sound like that the scream of a murderous killer.

It sounded like the scream of genuine terror.

* * *

Upstairs, Pale Girl was tied down on the table. The Boss and two other men stood over her, trying to cover their own ears to avoid their eardrums getting blasted by her screaming.

"Shush," The Boss whispered to Pale Girl. He was currently holding a syringe and a knife. The other two men were holding scissors and some other blades. The Pale Girl saw the devices in their hands, and started screaming even louder.

"Shut up," The Boss said, with a little more force. Eventually, he clasped a gloved hand over the Pale Girl's mouth to silence her.

"Boss, what are we doing?" One man asked.

"This will only take a moment," The Boss reassured them, and aimed the syringe at the girl's neck. The Pale Girl's head shook in the man's grasp.

"I need to get a sample of the virus if we're to make a cure," The Boss explained to the men. "Hopefully, this works."

The men had been so distracted by the Pale Girl that they hadn't noticed small footsteps coming up the stairs, and the sound of the door creaking open. The Pale Girl did, however, and quieted down.

"If it doesn't work?" The other man asked.

The Boss sighed. ". . . We might have to dissect her," He said. The Pale Girl's lifeless eyes now went wide, and she continued to scream and thrash against her binds.

"What?!"

Pale Girl stopped screaming, and her head turned. The three men spun around to the source of the sound.

It was Yellowjacket. She was standing at the door, and had heard everything. She saw the knives and syringes, and the Pale Girl strapped to the table.

Yellowjacket's jaw hung open in shock. Then, her eyes narrowed, and she gritted her teeth.

"Unhand her," She demanded. _"Now."_

* * *

 _Read and review._


	44. Separated - End of Act II

_Korrasami 88: 1. Yes, but she's a "smart" one. 2. She was horrified by the experiments Pale Girl was going through._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: No comment._

 _MrScourch: Let's hope Jill can run when she wants to._

 _Burglar: Oh?_

 _Antha1: Don't worry, this will all make sense in a while._

 _The Batista: Oh really?_

 _I must also say: I thought this chapter would get more comments. Oh well._

* * *

One truly doesn't know how fast they can run until they're running from the jaws of death.

Jill, for instance, didn't know that she could outrun three feral zombies that could not be reasoned with, even by other zombies. Blackjacket didn't know that he could keep up with her until his life was threatened.

Rob, with his large size, didn't know his stout legs could carry him through the forest almost faster than his three comrades. In the back of his mind, he wondered why he, a giant mountain of a man, didn't simply turn around and crush their pursuers with his fists. But that was only in the back of his mind.

The zombies behind them dashed nimbly through the trees after their targets. Their screeches and grunts echoed through the forest as their feet padded through the muddy, marshy ground.

Jill spun around and fired one bullet at the three feral zombies. The bullet nicked one of them in the shoulder, but the zombie continued running, shrugging off the bullet as if it hadn't even been wounded.

"Crap," Jill said as she spun around and continued running. One zombie skittered up a tree, and started swinging through the branches from above.

George looked up. "Um, guys," He said, causing everyone to look up and see the silhouette of the zombie leaping from tree to tree above them. They continued running faster than ever as the zombie from above swung from over their heads.

The two zombies on the ground got on all fours and spread out. One of them ran to the left of the ground; the other ran to the right.

Blackjacket turned his head to see the zombie on the right catching up to them and closing in. Quickly, he grabbed a low tree branch, pulling it back. As the zombie ran towards him, Blackjacket released the branch, letting it fly into the zombies' face. The zombie let out a shriek and collapsed into the mud.

The group heard a screech, and they looked up to see the zombie in the trees fling itself down towards the group. It tackled George, knocking him off course. The two went soaring into the air and off the side of a hill.

"George!" Mary cried as the group all skidded to a stop. They then raced down a hill, leading to a lake leading to the city.

George and the zombie lay on the ground, unconscious. As the group ran down the hill, Jill noticed a canoe near the shore. She looked up to see the two zombie racing down the hill after them.

"Into the boat!" Jill shouted as Rob slung George over his shoulder and the group took off towards the canoe. The two zombies charged down the hill after them.

Jill reached the boat first, and cringed when she saw the body of a young camper lying face-first in the boat. Stifling a barf, Jill slowly pulled the body out of the canoe, and the group all ran into the canoe.

Grabbing two paddles, Jill was about to enter when one of the zombies pounced at her. Instantly, Jill swung the paddle in the air, and cracked it against the zombie's head. There was a snapping sound, and the zombie went flying through the air and slumped onto the ground.

Jill then dove into the canoe, and she and Mary quickly started paddling the canoe through the lake. The remaining conscious zombie stopped at the shore, and watched as the group fled in the boat. It led out a final angry screech as its victims got away.

Blackjacket watched the zombie from afar, and let out a sigh of relief.

"That was a close one, wasn't it Jill," He said. Jill nodded, and smiled weakly, then turned and saw the city from afar.

"Let's go," She said, and they started paddling in the direction of the city.

* * *

"Unhand her, _now_."

Yellowjacket didn't know what was happening before her. All she saw was the Boss and his two men with nasty devices in their hands, and the Pale Girl strapped down on the table.

Yellowjacket eyed the men cautiously, and inched to the right. She had heard the Boss talk about "dissecting" the Patient Zero. She knew what dissect meant, and it definitely wasn't what she had intended for Pale Girl when she handed her over to the Boss.

"Ma'am, I suggest you leave," The Boss said lowly. "This is grownup business."

"No," Yellowjacket said firmly, her eyes narrowed. "You release this girl right now."

"I'm looking for a cure," The Boss told Yellowjacket. "That is what I said I would do, and I am not lying. Nothing I have done are things I said I wouldn't do when you agreed to find her."

"But I didn't want you to kill her," Yellowjacket said, her fingers twitching as she grabbed hold of a shelving rack. Her fingers tightened around.

"That is only a last resort," The Boss reassured her. As he did, the Pale Girl growled at him, and started struggling against her restraints. The men all backed away from her.

"I'm hoping this experiment works this time," The Boss mumbled to himself as he turned away from Yellowjacket and towards the Pale Girl, the syringe in his hand.

Yellowjacket's eyebrow furrowed. What did he mean by "This time?" She then made up her mind that something was wrong.

The Boss then heard the sound of something being thrown, and turned to see Yellowjacket fling the shelving rack in his direction. The Boss collapsed onto the ground, and the men all ran for cover. The rack smashed into the table, sending it crashing onto the ground.

The Boss' sunglasses clattered off his nose and landed on the ground. The Boss instantly covered his eyes, and started feeling for his sunglasses.

Yellowjacket approached, and said, "I'm sorry, but I can't let you. . . let you. . ."

Yellowjacket froze as the Boss turned and stared up at her. Yellowjacket's jaw dropped, and she started shaking.

The Boss' eyes were lifeless.

Before Yellowjacket could fully comprehend what she was seeing, the Pale Girl tore into the air, having been freed from her binds. She lunged at Yellowjacket, who screamed in terror.

The Pale Girl grabbed Yellowjacket by the wrist, and tore down the hallway with Yellowjacket in tow.

The Boss grabbed his sunglasses and put them on before his men could see him. His men got to their feet, and the Boss pointed down the hallway and shouted, "Get them!"

Pale Girl leaped into the air and kicked the steel doors open. With Yellowjacket's wrist in Pale Girl's clawed hands, the Patient Zero led Yellowjacket down the stairs. The men ran through the doors and charged after them.

Pale Girl released Yellowjacket, whirled around, and charged up at the men. She swung her claws out, barely missing them. The men collapsed on the stairs. Pale Girl hissed at them, her fangs out.

"No!" Yellowjacket shouted, and grabbed Pale Girl by the arms and pulled. The two girls then lost balance and tumbled down the stairs, landing in a heap on the floor.

Pale Girl and Yellowjacket got up, and the former noticed the men run down the stairs after them. Pale Girl let out a hateful screech, and grabbed Yellowjacket by the hair and pulled her up.

Kicking the door open, Pale Girl and Yellowjacket ran out to where the Freaks were. Men, women and children all screamed and raced out of the way as the feral girl ran out.

"It's Patient Zero!" Yellowjacket heard one woman cry. She wanted to pull herself out of Pale Girl's grip, but it was no use. Pale Girl was too strong.

"Riley!" Yellowjacket heard Bill shout, and she saw him push himself through the crowd. However, Pale Girl kept her grip on Yellowjacket's arm and continued to half-drag her through the group.

A few men with guns ran out and took aim. Pale Girl, pulling Yellowjacket with her, dodged all the bullets fired. The two shoved through the men blocking their way, until they were finally at the door leading outside.

As Pale Girl kicked the door open, Yellowjacket heard Margaret whisper, "Yellowjacket?"

Yellowjacket turned to Margaret, staring at her with a confused and hurt look in her eyes. Yellowjacket stared at her with sorrowful eyes, and all she could do was wave goodbye as she was yanked out through the door by Pale Girl.

And then they were gone. Pale Girl and Yellowjacket raced out of the building, onto the streets, and into the city.

They were gone.

Bill ran out of the door after them, shouting, "Riley! Come back, Riley!"

He would've continued running after them, but Joe came out and held him back.

"Are you crazy?!" He cried out. "There are zombies out there!"

"That's my daughter!" Bill shouted, wrenching himself out of Joe's grip. Joe stared at him with hard eyes, and Bill turned in the direction Yellowjacket and Pale Girl had left in.

"Riley!" He shouted, and ran in the direction of the city. But soon, he collapsed onto the ground. The two were too far gone for him to catch up to them.

Bill lay on his knees, staring off into the city, breathing heavily. He buried his face into his hands.

"Riley."

* * *

 _ **(In Bill's Mind)**_

The five emotions stared through Bill's screen in disbelief.

"What. . . what just happened?" Joy asked, rubbing his forehead as he tried to comprehend what had just transpired.

"She didn't just leave us," Fear whispered to try and reassure himself. "No, she didn't. That was. . . that was some other zombie girl, not our Riley. It couldn't have been."

"This can't be happening," Anger whispered, shaking his head in denial. "No way did Riley just. . ." Then he froze as he realized that they couldn't deny what had just happened.

Riley truly had left them.

The emotions all went silent, and lowered in their head in sorrow. Joy, Sadness, Fear, Disgust and Anger.

All five emotions.

But they were only feeling one emotion now.

* * *

 _ **End of Act II**_

* * *

 _Read and review._


	45. Blood Pact - Start of Act III

_Korrasami 88: Indeed._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: No, not bullsh*t._

 _MrScourch: Well, you'll find out the answers to these questions soon._

 _Antha1: No, Patient Zero is Patient Zero. Just because the Boss is also infected doesn't mean he's the first one._

 _I am a burglar: The Boss hasn't lost his eyes, duh._

 _RileyA: Yeah, Riley's screwed if she can't communicate._

 _The Batista: Indeed._

* * *

 _ **Act III**_

* * *

When the Boss came out from the upper section of the building, Bill couldn't see his eyes, but he could see the scowl on his face, and the way he bitterly strode past the crowd, and he could tell that he was pissed.

The Boss walked up to Bill, and came to a stop. The two stared at each other, silent, and the Boss finally said, "Patient Zero is gone. Because of your daughter."

Bill took a deep breath, and looked around at the disappointed faces around him. All eyes were on him and the Boss.

"It seems your daughter ran off with Patient Zero, too," The Boss continued. "She's gone. And with Patient Zero gone, we won't be able to find a cure. I hope your daughter's happy."

Bill sighed. He didn't know why Riley had freed Pale Girl, but he knew she must have had a reason behind it. But he knew that trying to tell the Boss that wouldn't be a satisfying answer to him, so he said nothing.

The Boss turned away from Bill, and shouted out, "I want my men to go out to the nearest perimeters and find Patient Zero. They can't have gotten too far. Move out!'

Bill watched as a group of men with guns ran out of the building and into trucks, and saw them drive off in the direction Patient Zero and Riley had gone. He let out a heavy sigh as he watched them vanish.

He wished his daughter luck.

* * *

Pale Girl hadn't stopped running since they had left the building. Her hand still gripping Yellowjacket's wrist, almost like a handcuff, steely, painful, and not releasing what it was holding.

Yellowjacket was beginning to immensely regret having ever freeing Pale Girl. She had no idea what the other zombie intended to do once she stopped running.

Yellowjacket took notice that Pale Girl had an odd way of running. Her back was always arched, as if in a constant pouncing position, and she'd always move by raising one foot in the air, then the other, as if taking a small leap. Every time she did this, Yellowjacket was dragged in the air as well. For such a small girl, Pale Girl was startlingly strong.

Pale Girl finally came to a stop behind a car, and she dragged Yellowjacket to the ground. Yellowjacket scrambled to get up off the ground, and found Pale Girl staring at her suspiciously.

Pale Girl was now on all four, moving to Yellowjacket's left, her eyes on her. Pale Girl then turned and starting walking to the right of Yellowjacket.

Yellowjacket sat up, and started scooting towards a car. Pale Girl hissed at her, her teeth bared. She skittered towards Yellowjacket, coming up so close that their faces almost touched.

Yellowjacket pressed her body up against the car as much as she could. Pale Girl's two clawed hands shot out into the car around Yellowjacket's head, her claws piercing and tearing into the car's metal effortlessly.

Yellowjacket gasped, and shrunk down. Pale Girl started sniffing the air around Yellowjacket, and once again stepped back. She eyed Yellowjacket suspiciously.

Feeling that communicating was her only chance of staying alive, Yellowjacket said, "My name is Yellowjacket. You-"

Pale Girl let out a loud hiss, cutting her off.

"Frreeeaaaa-" She hissed at her. Yellowjacket didn't know why Pale Girl kept saying that.

Pale Girl started skittering around the sidewalk, her head whipping around. She continued to sniff the area around her, as if trying to detect any other presence nearby.

Yellowjacket thought that Pale Girl was distracted, and got up and turned to leave. Maybe, if she was quick, she could get back to the building without Pale Girl noticing-

Yellowjacket saw a pale blur fly past her, and before she could move, Pale Girl was in front of her. She growled, and forced Yellowjacket back.

Yellowjacket collapsed onto the ground, realizing now that Pale Girl wasn't letting her leave. She was practically Pale Girl's prisoner now.

Oh, how she wished she was with Bill, or Jill, at this moment. But here she was, stuck with what may be the most savage zombie in the city.

Pale Girl's gaze left Yellowjacket, and she started sniffing the air. She growled, her eyes narrowed, and she grabbed Yellowjacket and started to half-drag her into an alleyway.

The moment they were in the alley, a large truck drove up nearby. Yellowjacket and Pale Girl remained hidden, staring at it as the window shield was rolled down, revealing two men's face.

"Is this where they went?" One man asked. Another man got out of the truck, a flashlight in his hand. He scanned the area, looking for any sign of the two zombies.

"They've got to be here somewhere," The man said. He shined the light in the alley, and he could just barely make out two figures in it.

"Hey, I think I see something!" The man called out. Just as the words left his mouth, the men heard a hiss, followed by Pale Girl flying out of the alley. Her hand whipped out and slashed the man's chest, causing him to cry out in agony and collapse on the ground, blood streaming from his wounds.

"Oh, crap!" The man in the truck said as Pale Girl came for him. One man started to step on the engines, and the other man tried to roll up the window shied, but Pale Girl pounced, her hand smashing against the window. The glass shattered into the truck, and it went veering off course. It crashed into a pole, destroying the engines completely.

As the man in the truck started to evacuate, Pale Girl ran to the man on the ground, and grabbed his gun.

Just as the men in the truck pulled out their weapons, a flurry of wild bullets sprayed in their direction. The man dodged for cover as Pale Girl wildly fired the gun at them.

Yellowjacket ran out of the alley, and grabbed Pale Girl under her arms. She started to pull Pale Girl away as the girl continued to fire her weapon.

The two girls stepped over the edge of a nearby hill, and they tumbled off the side of it. They rolled down the hill, and came to a stop at the bottom.

Pale Girl recovered first, and she looked up the hill, waiting to see if the men appeared. They didn't.

When they didn't show up, Pale Girl picked up the gun, and wandered towards Yellowjacket, who stumbled to her wobbly feet, clutching her wounded arm. Yellowjacket was briefly heavily, and her gaze met Pale Girl's.

Pale Girl stared hard at her, and Yellowjacket saw the gun in her hand. She wondered if Pale Girl planned to use it.

Instead, Pale Girl slung the gun onto her back, and grabbed Yellowjacket by the shoulder and pulled her close. She shook Yellowjacket, and nodded and grunted.

Yellowjacket didn't understand what Pale Girl was doing. She did when Pale Girl released her, before spreading out her hand. Using her other hand, Pale Girl sliced the palm of her own let, letting black blood seep out. She then held out her hand to Yellowjacket, and grunted and nodded again.

Yellowjacket understood. Hesitantly, she pressed her own claw against the palm of her hand, and made a small cut. She flinched as her skin was pierced.

Her own blood, redder than Pale Girl's, seeped out of the wound. With that, Yellowjacket pressed her wounded hand against Pale Girl's. Yellowjacket stared as Pale Girl's long claws wrapped around her hand.

Their blood was unified now.

From now on, they were blood sisters.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	46. The Docks

_N/A: Okay people, seriously. Neither's blood is going to affect to affect the other in away way._

 _NexusOscura: George and Mary have black hair, Shelley is blonde, and Rob has red hair._

 _The Batista: Uh, sure._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Look up the definition of "blood brother/sister"._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Uh-huh._

 _MrScourch: She pulled Pale Girl away so she'd stop shooting. She wasn't in the line of fire._

 _Antha1: Please look at the note at the top of the page._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Uh, they just had the opposite reaction._

 _Candlehead: No, she's a zombie._

 _Korrasami 88: She just became blood sisters with patient zero._

 _I am a burglar: What?_

 _RileyA: Eh._

* * *

The four Others and the Freak were canoeing in the sea, heading in the direction of the nearby city docks.

"How long have we been in this boat?" Mary complained, lying on her back. Jill ignored her, trying her best to stare at the docks to make sure there weren't any zombies there. She noticed that they had stopped, and saw that the zombies had stopped rowing.

"Keep rowing," She ordered to the zombies. Shelley groaned, but she obeyed.

"But it's so boring," George whined.

". . . Why don't we sing about it?" Rob suggested. George's eyes widened in shock.

"No, you don't need to-"

"Row, row row your boat, gently down the stream," Rob and Blackjacket sang. "Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily, life is but a dream."

"Ugh," George groaned, and smashed his head against the bottom of the canoe in irritation. Jill gave a passing glance, then continued facing forward.

"That was great," Blackjacket said, smiling cheerfully.

"Now, our style!" Rob shouted.

 _"Shoot, shoot, shoot your gun, blast the Freaks right now! Bang, bang, bang, bang, life is but a scream!"_

"I thought the Freaks shoot us?" Mary pointed out. Rob shushed her.

"Hey, we're here," Jill said as the canoe started to enter the docking bay. The zombies all immediately jumped to their feet in the canoe, and in their rush they nearly toppled the boat over.

"Get down!" Jill ordered. "We don't know if there are more of. . . you out there."

"Oh," Mary said, sitting down. They hid in the canoe as they inspected the docks, trying to see if there were any zombies wandering close nearby. They saw none.

As the canoe reached the docks, the zombies were the first to get out. Jill exited last, holding the gun just in case there were any zombies nearby.

"You know, even if there aren't any Others here, we're bound to run into some," George pointed out to Jill. "Do you really want to come with us?"

Jill paused at this. That was a question she had trouble answering.

* * *

 _ **(In Jill's Mind)**_

"So, why did we come out here again?" Fear asked, for clarification.

"We came here to find Bill and Riley," Sadness reminded the other emotions. "Why else?"

"Oh," The emotions said, followed by a resounding sigh from all of them, followed by silence.

"So, how exactly do we plan on navigating through this city full of zombies?" Disgust asked, hoping she'd receive a good answer.

She got none.

* * *

Yellowjacket was walking stiffly through the empty streets, Pale Girl scampering on all fours, slightly ahead of her. Yellowjacket was keeping at a pace where she wasn't far enough to bail on Pale Girl, but she wasn't close to her either.

Pale Girl was facing forward, seemingly ignoring Yellowjacket. However, Yellowjacket knew that Pale Girl wouldn't truly let her out of her sight. If Yellowjacket tried to turn and flee, Pale Girl would come after her.

After all, they'd made a blood pact. Pale Girl wouldn't let her go back on that.

The gun was slung over Pale Girl's shoulders, Yellowjacket staring at it. She turned in the direction of the building, wondering what Bill was doing back there. She stopped waking.

Pale Girl stopped, turned around, and growled at her, demanding that she continue moving. Yellowjacket hesitantly obeyed.

Yellowjacket didn't know where they were going, but she guessed as far away from the building as possible. And that meant as far away from Bill as possible.

"Where are we going?" Yellowjacket asked, hoping that Pale Girl understood her. Pale Girl didn't respond. She just kept walking.

"What was the Boss planning to do?" Yellowjacket blurted out suddenly, saying the very next thing that entered her mind.

Pale Girl looked over her shoulder and stared at Yellowjacket with icy cold eyes. Yellowjacket froze.

Pale Girl said nothing. She did nothing. She just stared at her. It struck Yellowjacket as odd that this stare was the closest thing to actual hatred that she'd seen from the girl. Not all the times she'd torn someone open. That seemed more animal-like, or instinctual.

The glare in Pale Girl's eyes right now was _hate._

Pale Girl continued walking. Yellowjacket stood still, unsure of what to do. A hiss from Pale Girl was what signaled for her to continue walking.

She didn't know how far the two had been walking, but she did notice that she was beginning to see more figures. Dead, lifeless figures.

Yellowjacket looked into an alley, and she saw the silhouettes of multiple zombies, crouched in a hiding spot. They shuffled away as they noticed Yellowjacket. Or, Yellowjacket thought, because they noticed Pale Girl.

Zombies were appearing on the roads now, and shambling on the sidewalks. Some zombies looked out of windows at the two young zombies that had arrived.

Once, it had been such a natural occurrence for Yellowjacket to see crowds of Others on the streets. But now, she was somewhat disturbed by their very presence. Pale Girl didn't seem bothered, though Yellowjacket figured it was because she was more feral than the rest of them.

As more of them appeared, Yellowjacket knew that she wasn't with the Freaks anymore.

She was in the zombie zone now.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	47. A New Home

_Antha1: Yeah, but what about everyone else._

 _Korrasami 88: From what?_

 _NexusOscura: Ah, so many things are happening to this poor dead girl._

 _I am a burglar: Um, okay._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Well, we've established the zombies have enough personality to be obnoxious._

 _Candlehead: Who knows?_

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Nice._

 _MrScourch: Pale Girl is simply violent in general, and this partnership thing is pretty new to her._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Why are you trying to force this "Yellowjacket vs Pale Girl" thing._

 _Minty Zaki: Um, I guess._

* * *

"Can I open my eyes now?"

"Not quite yet. You're almost done."

"Rob, she's done."

"Shut up Shelley, we're still working."

"You're just using that as an excuse to stare at her jugs. Knock it off!"

"Okay, fine! Jill, you're done. Open your eyes."

Jill's brown eyes fluttered open. She felt different, and she put her hands to her face. Her skin felt harder. She pressed her hands away, and found red paint on it. She looked around at the garage where they were currently hiding in. Luckily, there were no zombies there aside from the ones in front of her.

"You did it?" She asked, staring at the five zombies for confirmation. "You made me look like one of you?"

"I. . . remember being a bit of a makeup artist," Mary said, shrugging her shoulders a bit. "There's a mirror, if you want to take a look."

Jill smiled a bit, and wandered to the nearby mirror to take a good look at her new look.

"That is one hard hour of work right there," Mary said, grinning.

"Wow," Jill said as she admired herself in the mirror. She had very pale painted skin that gave her a corpse-like appearance. She had been given black eyeshadows. Red paint was smeared on her mouth to look like blood, and the zombies had used blue markers to give the illusion of blue veins.

"Will this fool the Others," Jill asked, still somewhat doubting her appearance.

The zombies shrugged. "You know the Others," George said. "They're stupid." He then turned to see the Others staring at him with dull expressions.

"It's true," He said, shrinking down under their stares.

"Never mind that!" Jill shouted, standing up tall. "Let's find my daughter and husband!"

* * *

Yellowjacket didn't know what to think now that she was with her own kind now. She'd subconsciously knew that it was only a matter of time, but she still had never prepared herself for this moment.

The Others somewhat acknowledged her present, but not much. They didn't have the mind to. Some gave a passing glance at the new presence in the area, but that was all.

Most of the focus was on Pale Girl. Every time a passing zombie go to close, Pale Girl would hiss at them, warning them to stay back. One zombie lumbered up past Yellowjacket, and Pale Girl snapped at him with her fangs and claws. The zombie immediately limped away at a fast pace.

Yellowjacket narrowed her eyes at Pale Girl, and asked, "Where are we going?"

Pale Girl didn't respond. Yellowjacket initially guessed the other girl was trying to be cryptic, but she soon reached a different conclusion.

"We're not going anywhere, are we?" She asked. This caused Pale Girl to stop walking.

"You have no home do you?" Yellowjacket asked. Pale Girl's ear twitched.

"Why don't we just make a home here?" Yellowjacket asked, hoping not to receive a fierce rebuttal. Pale Girl hung her head and growled in her throat, attracting the attention of nearby zombies.

Pale Girl whirled around in a flurry of white and yellow, and she suddenly flew into the open door of the nearest building. Yellowjacket ran after her. The zombies stared at her, then went back to what they were doing.

"Are we making a home here?" Yellowjacket asked Pale Girl as she ascended up the stairs. Pale Girl let out a gagging sound, which Yellowjacket took to be a yes.

"Oh, that is great!" Yellowjacket said, giving a relieved smile. She ran up the stairs towards her, but Pale Girl turned and swatted Yellowjacket in the face. The girl stumbled, but did not fall.

Yellowjacket stared up at Pale Girl with the eyes of a confused young child. Pale Girl snorted and continued up the stairs. She found a room, and for a brief moment, Yellowjacket thought she could make out Pale Girl smiling.

The smile vanished, however, when Pale Girl noticed a few zombies were in the room. She let out a growl, then an enraged screech, and she scrambled on all fours into the room to confront the threat to her new territory.

Pale Girl immediately started screaming and thrashing at the other zombies, who were confused at the sudden knew arrival. Pale Girl stood up as tall as she was (which wasn't very tall), and threw back her shoulders to intimidate the other zombies.

A hand grabbed Pale Girl by the shoulder and yanked her back. Yellowjacket dragged a screaming and thrashing Pale Girl out of the room. The moment they were in the hallway, Yellowjacket let her go.

Pale Girl immediately started shouting something inaudible at Yellowjacket, who cut her off.

"While we're here, you will not do that," Yellowjacket demanded to Pale Girl. Pale Girl was breathing raggedly, her eyes staring at Yellowjacket. It appeared she hadn't anticipated this development in their pact.

"If we're to make a home here, you will not make. . . enemies," Yellowjacket stated firmly. She knew she couldn't show fear; if she did, Pale Girl would detect it and not take her seriously.

"Please," Yellowjacket pleaded, holding Pale Girl's hand.

Pale Girl closed her mouth, and her gaze wandered to the walls indignantly. She ran a clawed hand over her nose and wiped some phlegm from the roof of her mouth. She then snorted, and wandered off down the hallway.

Yellowjacket let her go. She knew Pale Girl needed some time alone. While her mind wasn't fully developed, she understood that this was a new development for Pale Girl, and one she needed some time to prepare for.

That, she would grant her new partner.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	48. So Close And So Far

_Creamy Butterap: Oh really now?_

 _NexusOscura: Huh, I didn't notice Yellowjacket's ability to reason with enraged Others until now._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Maybe, maybe not._

 _Korrasami 88: Yeah, socialization to zombiehood :D_

 _I am a burglar: *sigh*_

 _MrScourch: It was established Others notice something's off with smell if they smell clean, so Jill might need to roll in some dirt. I didn't notice any "cost of rent" jokes._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: You'd probably be tazered by the donut police._

 _Antha1:...Okay._

* * *

"You let them get away?!" The Boss shouted to the men sent to recapture Pale Girl and Yellowjacket. After the two zombies had escaped, the remaining men had returned to the building to relay the bad news.

"It wasn't our fault, boss," One of the men said, holding up his hands. "The girl just came at us! We didn't know what to do!"

The Boss waved him off. "Now, you told me Patient Zero acquired one of your guns?" He asked, irritated. "And she knows how to use it?"

The men nodded dejectedly. The Boss turned away from them, his mouth a thin line.

Bill and Margaret watched him from afar. Bill didn't think the Boss could get so angry, but he figured that would've been the result of having to be a source of order in a city of chaos.

The Boss straightened up. "Get all the gunners!" He ordered to Joe. "They couldn't have gotten far. I want you to send out all the available gunners and send them out to find them. I don't care where they are. Scour the city until you find Patient Zero!"

"But, boss," Joe started.

"Now!" Boss shouted at him. "I don't care how many Others you have to shoot! Find Patient Zero before we all lose our humanity!"

"On it!" Joe said, his voice trembling. He then ran off to inform every gunner. The Boss stood still, his head lowered.

Bill watched the Boss slowly. He noticed that the Boss was grumbling deeply in his throat. It was a low grumble, but Bill noticed that it sounded more like a growl.

The growl the Others made.

The Boss snapped up, noticed Bill, and said, "What are you standing around for. Go off and do something useful!"

Bill stared at the Boss, and cautiously turned his back and walked away, Margaret following him.

* * *

In a different section of the city, a group of zombies were wandering through a building when they were distracted by the sound of crying.

". . . What's that?" One zombie growled out to the zombie standing by his left. The zombies turned to the source of the crying, which was coming from within a small room, it's door half-open.

The zombies peaked into the door, and saw two zombies inside. One zombie was a young woman with tattered clothing and ghoulish skin, and the other was an older zombie dressed like a businessman. The female zombie was in the bed, her face buried in her hands, sobbing.

"Please Ghoul, stop crying," Noose pleaded to Ghoul to try to get her to stop crying. "We have to put this behind us."

Ghoul sniffled and wiped a tear away. "But I. . . I can't," She moaned, then proceeded to bury her face in her hands again. "She left us. Yellowjacket left us!"

"You're making a scene here," Noose mentioned, motioning to the zombies staring at them through the door. The zombies immediately stared off, pretending not to be looking. One zombie made a cheerful whistling sound.

Ghoul waved them off. "Oh, who cares about them?" She asked. "They didn't have to look after a child."

"We both knew some day Yellowjacket would have to leave us," Noose said to try and sooth her.

"Yeah, but for the Freaks?" Ghoul whined. "I mean, who knows where they've taken her? She's probably gone now, and we'll never see her again!"

* * *

Outside the building, Yellowjacket was wandering through the streets when she heard crying. She, along with the other zombies present, turned to a window high up on a building.

* * *

 _ **(In Yellowjacket's Mind)**_

". . . Does that crying sound familiar to you?" Brick asked, rubbing his head.

Star stroked her chin thoughtfully, then shrugged and shook her head. "Eh, it's probably one of those witches again," She said.

"Oh," The emotions said, nodding in agreement.

* * *

Pale Girl paced through the building, in deep thought; or at least, as deep as her thought process went.

She still didn't know why she did it. Why did she take that. . . _thing_ under her wing. 'Riley' was what that man had referred to her as. Why had she done it, when this 'Riley' was responsible for her capture.

It didn't make sense to her. She'd never made pacts before; there was no need. She could take care of herself. So why had she made the blood pact with Riley.

The girl was a freak, Pale Girl knew it. She was like an Other, but also like a Freak. It was like she was some sort of mutated strand of the Others. Was this another one of the Boss' creations?

Pale Girl narrowed her eyes. She remembered the Boss all too well, and she knew she would never forgive him for what he's done. She'd find him some day and exact her vengeance upon him. And now that she had a gun, she'd be more formidable than before.

She saw a zombie lumbering down the hallway. It didn't notice her, and passed on.

Pale Girl narrowed her eyes. Maybe that was what she needed Riley for. As a communicator.

Riley could talk to both Others and Freaks. That could prove useful when dealing with the Others. Pale Girl wasn't a talker, so having a translator of sorts would prove beneficial, especially now that she was forced to mingle with the Others.

Pale Girl grimaced. Riley was a use to her now, at least until she could find the time to get her claws on the Boss.

Then her vengeance would be complete.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	49. Emulation

_Korrasami 88: Meh._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Yeah, they're TOTALLY going to do a fine job._

 _I am a burglar: Whatever floats your boat._

 _MrScourch: Okay, normally I'd leave it in the dark, but I'll come clean. "Another one" wasn't meant to imply anything. Since Pale Girl has to do with the Boss (oops, spoilers), Pale Girl just wonders if Yellowjacket went through a similar experience._

 _Antha1: I'm intentionally not showing Pale Girl's HQ. Well, Ghoul may see herself as Riley's parent._

 _The Batista: Not really._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Moving on._

 _Candlehead: Yeah, sure._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: She's important to Ghoul._

 _Meow point1: We all do. Well, not everyone._

* * *

"Hey, I think I'm picking up Riley's scent," Blackjacket told the group as he moved at a greater distance than the others. The rest were lagging behind, mainly due to the unfamiliar surroundings.

"So, my daughter is close?" Jill asked, for confirmation. Blackjacket turned, and nodded. Invigorated, the group spurred forward. If they found Yellowjacket, surely they'd also find Bill, and they'd be able to return to their cabin in no time.

The group's relief was cut off when they started to near the area. They stopped behind a building, and peaked out.

The area was swarming with lumbering, slow-moving zombies. They limped and stumbled down the streets and sidewalks absentmindedly.

"Cripes," Mary whispered, hiding behind Jill. "I've never seen so many Others."

Jill shushed Mary, and ruffled her black hair. "Don't worry," She reassured her. "You're also zom. . . Others. They won't hurt you."

She then paused, and started at herself in the reflection of a shop to make sure her appearance looked convincing enough. "I just hope they don't hurt me," She said.

Blackjacket turned and narrowed his eyes at the group. "Yeah, loitering about and talking among yourselves won't attract attention to us at all," He said. Jill blinked once, a little unsettled that zombies still used sarcasm.

The group walked out from the building and onto the streets, trying to look as non-suspicious as possible. To better emulate the Others, they started limping and shambling.

"I can't believe I have to pretend to be something I already am," Shelley whispered as she pretended to have a broken leg that dragged behind.

Jill looked around at all the zombies surrounding her. One of them sat alone on the sidewalk, playing with a torn up doll. Another one was scratching his claws on the walls.

She was so distracted that she wasn't looking where she was going and bumped into a zombie that was crouched on the ground.

"Oh, crap," She whispered as the zombie let out a surprised screech and turned to see what had struck her. Surrounding the zombie, several other crouched zombies turned around at the source of her plight.

Jill's painted skin paled even more as the zombies turned to her, and she saw that they were crouched over a dead body.

The offended zombie got up, her back hunched over. "Who are you?" She rasped out, pointing a clawed finger in Jill's direction. Jill life flashed before her eyes.

"Me?" She whispered. She realized she sounded too normal, so she let out a loud cough, and then said, in a raspy voice, "Nobody."

The hunchbacked zombies all continued to stare at her, when Blackjacket peaked out from an open door and said, "I can smell Riley in here."

Jill took the opportunity to shamble away from the zombies and, the moment she was out of sight, she bolted into the door. Resting against the wall, she let out a relieved sigh, and wiped the sweat from her forehead, which was smearing her paint.

"That was close," She said, and inhaled. At that moment, the rest of the group ran through the door.

"Those guys out there are creepy," Mary said. "Let's just find your daughter and husband and get out of here."

Jill nodded, and they walked up the stairs. They could definitely smell Riley's distinct scent from upstairs, and they knew she was nearby.

"Riley," The group whispered out, trying not to attract the attention of any other zombies that were also in the building. They initially got no answer. Then, group heard a heavy sighing coming from in the hallway, but they couldn't see anyone in the dark lighting.

"Riley?" Jill whispered, and instinctively reached for the switch. She flicked the light on, and the blazing lights flashed on.

Immediately, they were met witch a crouching zombie sitting on the hallways. The moment the lights turned on, the zombie let out a shrill screech and clasped her claws over her eyes.

Jill covered her mouth, and immediately turned the lights off.

Then, the group heard footsteps coming close. Huddling close for protection, the group looked around at all sides so they weren't caught off guard.

They footsteps got louder and closer. Mary huddled close to Jill, who held her tight. It initially struck her as off that she was shielding a zombie that wasn't her daughter, but she shoved the thought out.

Family or not, she wasn't letting any other zombie hurt them.

The footsteps got closer.

"Who's there!" Jill shouted, moving from the rest of the group and standing tall. "Show yourself, now!"

The footsteps stopped instantly. Jill refused to falter; she'd fought zombies before, she'd do it again.

Then, she heard a raspy voice.

"Jill?"

Jill's eyes widened. She recognized that voice, but it wasn't Bill or Yellowjacket.

". . . Bob?"

Ignoring the zombie crouched in the hallways, Jill flicked on the lights again. The zombie screeched again in agony when George simply said, "Shut up."

There, standing in the hallways, were the members of her former group, the only difference being that they were now zombified. She recognized several familiar faces, especially Bob's.

"J-J-Jill?" Bob said, his voice now raspy. His skin was paler now, he was more bloated, and his veins were blue.

". . . You got infected?" Jill said, in disbelief.

"Um, do you know them?" Shelley asked, but Jill shushed her.

"Uh, yes, we got. . . meh," Bob said, and looked down, somewhat embarrassed. It was clear that he remembered the humiliating way he got dispatched.

Jill felt a giggle, and she covered her mouth to keep from bursting out laughing. "Oh my gosh," She whispered, incredulous, and she started snorting and chuckling as she tried to suppress her laugh.

Bill narrowed his eyes. "It's not funny," He said, somewhat offended at Jill's lack of sympathy.

"Sorry," Jill said, but she didn't stop laughing. She finally uncovered her mouth, and she doubled over in laughter.

It was unsympathetic, and immature. Some would say it was even sadistic. But at the moment, Jill just couldn't stop laughing at the group's karma.

"I knew you guys wouldn't last long without me and Bill," She said as she finally stopped laughing.

Then, another voice rose up, and Jill's humor vanished as she heard, and recognized it.

"Mom?"

Jill spun around to see who it was, and she gasped when she saw her.

It was Yellowjacket.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	50. Reunion (Again)

_Korrasami 88: It's not going to work like that._

 _NexusOscura: I should probably say this now: all the zombies are gathering at this spot, so of course the group would also be there. And yes, that's the reason Jill was laughing._

 _I am a burglar: He can't smell money._

 _MrScourch: I'm going to tackle this "do they mindlessly attack humans still" topic._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Yeah, I wondered if anyone still knew about that._

 _Antha1: That's... not it. It's actually quite the opposite. The zombies don't take bathes, but Yellowjacket was given a bath, so her scent is different from the other zombies. Also, huh, I just now realized Ghoul really was more upset at losing Yellowjacket._

* * *

Yellowjacket stood in the hallway, half-concealed by the darkness, her blue eyes glimmering in the dark and facing Jill. The zombified group members shuffled away from her, still vaguely remembering what she'd done in the apartment days before.

Yellowjacket definitely looked different now. Her skin wasn't as pale anymore, and her hair was more golden. Her veins were still blue, but they were more faded. She didn't look as ghoulish as the Others in the same area.

"Mom?" She whispered to Jill, a confused look on her face. She stared at her mother's painted white skin, and for a moment, she feared the worst.

Jill, disregarding her own appearance, instantly rushed over and wrapped her arms around Yellowjacket.

"Riley," She whispered in relieved joy. "You're safe."

"Yeah, mom," Yellowjacket whispered as she half-returned the hug, still somewhat unsure. "What about you?"

Jill then remembered her disguise, and whispered, "Don't worry; it's fake." Yellowjacket slightly nodded in response.

Urged by the heartwarming reunion, the five other zombies rushed over and shouted, "Group hug!" Before all joining in on the hug.

Jill finally release Yellowjacket and asked, "Where's Bill?"

Yellowjacket's eyes widened in shock. "It's a very long story," She said.

"Keep it short, please," Shelley pleaded to her, not having the mind for a very long conversation.

"We found the other Freaks," Yellowjacket explained to the group. "There's a whole group of them, all holed up in a building. And there are Others that are. . . like me."

"Really?" Jill asked, intrigued, before repeating, "Where's Bill?"

"The Boss sent us out to find 'Patient Zero'," Yellowjacket said, horribly mimicking the Boss' voice. "We got her, but then I saw him doing these horrible things to her, and I. . . freed her. We came here, but Bill's still at the building."

Jill noticed that Yellowjacket was no longer growling as she breathed like the Others did. However, she ignored it and said, "Well, we have to go there and get him."

Yellowjacket was about to agree, but then she remembered an important issue. "I. . . can't," She confessed, lowering her head in shame. The group all got a confused look on their face.

"Why not?" George asked, scratching his head.

"Because, I-" Yellowjacket started, but was cut off when the group heard a loud screeching noise coming from a higher section of the building. All the zombies nearby instinctively got onto the ground and covered their ears.

"What is that?" Jill asked, the only one standing.

Yellowjacket uncovered her ears. "Follow me," She said, her voice wobbly.

* * *

Yellowjacket led the group to a higher, more vacant area in the building. This area was emptier, and looked unfinished. In one hallway, there was an open door that was covered in scratch marks.

Yellowjacket led the group to the door, and shushed them as they advanced. "Be quiet," Yellowjacket whispered to the group. "She doesn't like company."

"Who?" Jill asked, keeping her voice as low as possible.

"Her?" Yellowjacket said, and creaked the door open a bit and pointed inside. The group all peaked inside, and saw Pale Girl in the empty room, pacing back and forth on all fours.

Blackjacket let out a small gasp. "That's the girl who chased up out of the apartment," He pointed out. Yellowjacket clasped a hand over his mouth as Pale Girl whipped her head at the door for a moment, then went back to pacing.

"That's Patient Zero," Yellowjacket whispered.

"What's going on?" Jill asked. "Why can't we go?"

"I made a pact with her," Yellowjacket explained regretfully. "We're blood sisters. I can't abandon her."

Jill furrowed her eyes. "But she's a. . . never mind," She said. "We have to go get Bill."

"Pale Girl won't let me leave," Yellowjacket said. "If we go, she'll follow us. She'll hurt someone."

At that moment, Pale Girl got onto her feet and started sniffing the air. She turned to the door and let out a screech, signaling for Yellowjacket to enter the room. Hesitantly, Yellowjacket obeyed.

The group watched fearfully as Pale Girl approached Yellowjacket. The feral girl paced around Yellowjacket, then pulled the gun from her back. Jill felt the urge to rush in an protect Yellowjacket, but restrained herself.

Pale Girl aimed the gun at the wall, and nudged Yellowjacket to make sure she was watching. Then, Pale Girl pulled the trigger, and a spurt of bullets hit the wall. Then, she turned back to Yellowjacket, her mouth hanging open in a fanged smile. She let out what sounded like a laugh, and started shaking Yellowjacket's shoulder.

Yellowjacket let out a nervous laugh alongside Pale Girl. Suddenly, Pale Girl shoved the gun into Yellowjacket's hands.

Yellowjacket's skin paled as she stared at the heavy object. Pale Girl nodded, and pointed at the wall, which was riddled with bullets.

"Um," Yellowjacket said, shaking a bit. Pale Girl, irritated, shoved Yellowjacket forward.

Yellowjacket turned to the door, where the group was standing. Then, she turned to the wall, and started to aim the gun. She put her finger on the trigger, and prepared t fire.

 _Bang! Bang! Bang!_

The group at the door all got on floor as they heard the sound of bullets ringing through the door. Pale Girl let out a confused screech, her hand whipping left and right.

The group all got up, and it was then that they realized that the gunfire hadn't come from the gun in Yellowjackets' hands.

Yellowjacket dropped the gun and rushed to the window to see what was happening outside. Ignoring Pale Girl's presence, the group rushed in as well. Pale Girl let out a confused screech as they entered.

The group saw Yellowjacket breathing heavily as she stared down at the streets. "What's happening?" Jill asked as she squeezed past the group and stared at the window.

"Oh, no," Jill whispered as she saw it.

On the streets, several green trucks were driving through the zombie-infested streets, men with guns in them. The zombies all scattered in shock as the men started firing bullets in the air.

Yellowjacket instantly got on her knees, shaking.

"Who are they?" Mary asked, stepping away from the window.

Yellowjacket looked up at the group, terror in her eyes.

"They're here for Patient Zero and me," She whispered, terrified.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	51. Street Fight

_Korrasami 88: You don't know?_

 _I am a burglar: You know..._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Let's move on to the interesting reviews..._

 _MrScourch: Bill isn't there. Now that you mention it, the zombies were creepier early on; I guess humanizing them in the form of Yellowjacket and co. took away the fear factor._

 _Antha1: Yellowjacket has other plans._

 _The Batista: Oh, really?_

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Uh, I think there's other things to worry about at the moment._

* * *

"Oh, crap!" George shouted as the men in trucks drove down the street through the hordes of zombies. "This is bad! There are more Freaks!"

"I knew we shouldn't have left the forest," Shelley whispered to herself. Pale Girl crept past the zombies and stared out at the window, and watched what was transpiring down below. The men were currently firing their guns as the zombies swarmed at them. Upon recognizing the trucks, Pale Girl growled, and spun around to head to the door.

"Is Bill down there?" Jill asked, pushing through the zombies to get a look. Yellowjacket, who was squeezed in between her mother and Mary, couldn't see her father in between them.

"We have to get down there, mother," Yellowjacket said, and began to rush towards the door.

"Mother?" Jill asked, in disbelief. Yellowjacket rushed towards the door after Pale Girl, the other zombies following suit. Jill just stood in the room, in shock.

"She called me mother?" She whispered in shock. Then, she snapped back to attention and shouted, "Riley, wait!" She then dashed out after her.

* * *

"Why do we always have to take the dangerous missions?" One of the gunners asked as he aimed his gun at the masses of zombies crawling onto the streets. He shot one zombie in the arm, knocking him over.

"We have to find Patient Zero," One of the other men said, shooting a zombie in the head. "You know what the Boss said. Shoot as many as it takes to get her!"

"Yeah, I guess. . ." The first man mumbled, unsure. Suddenly, one zombie pounced onto the truck and grabbed hold of the screaming man, knocking him back on the truck.

The trucks came to a stop, the zombies starting to crawl atop it. Then, the doors burst open, and a group of armed men rushed out. They started shooting off into the crowd randomly to beat the zombies back.

Suddenly, the doors to the building burst open, and Pale Girl and Yellowjacket rushed out the door. Yellowjacket stopped running when she was on the sidewalk while Pale Girl rushed, on all fours, towards the nearest truck.

"It's her!" One man shouted when he noticed her. "It's Patient Zero! Get her!"

Pale Girl pounced into the air and tackled the man to the ground, sinking her teeth into the man's shoulder. The man let out a cry of pain as he collapsed onto the ground. A group of zombies swarmed him.

Yellowjacket watched as the Others and Freaks rushed at each other.

"Shoot," She whispered to herself, wondering what she should do. It was then that she remembered that she had a gun in her hands.

". . . Shoot," She repeated, and held the gun up. She aimed it at one of the Freaks standing near the truck. She took a deep breath, and put her finger on the trigger, and prepared to fire.

Then, she hesitated. The gun began to wobble in her arms.

"Come on, you've shot before. . ." She said to herself, recalling the incident in the apartment. She remembered the way she'd seen the blood spray on the ground. However, the memory only caused her grip on the gun to worsen.

Taking a deep breath, Yellowjacket lowered the gun. She couldn't shoot it.

Suddenly, the four Others took off past her, charging off into the crowd of zombies. Yellowjacket was knocked off her feet, and landed on her face on the pavement.

"Zuul, mother-fu-" Rob shouted as he rammed past a group of Freaks and into the truck, tipping it over. George slammed into the truck as well, causing it to full topple onto its side. A group of Freaks were flung out of the truck and descended upon by zombies.

One man began to get up, and Mary tackled him to the ground, putting him in a headlock. The man struggled to get to his feet, Mary on his back.

"Heads up!" George said, and headbutted the man in the gut, causing him to double over in pain. Mary then bit the man on the shoulder.

Yellowjacket scrambled to her feet just as the former members of her parent's group slowly walked out of the building.

"Come on!" She shouted, and started to rush onto the streets. She then stopped, and turned around to see the group standing on the sidewalk, iffy.

"Should we. . ." Bob said to himself.

"Bob!" Jill shouted irritably as she stormed out of the building. She wasn't really advocating infecting the Freaks; she was just in disbelief that, even as the undead, Bob's laziness hadn't vanished.

"Okay!" Bob said, putting up his arms in defense. The group then rushed out onto the streets to ward off the Freaks.

Yellowjacket jumped on one man's back as he aimed a gun at Mary, pulling on his hair.

"Get off me!" The man cried repeatedly as he rushed around, trying to pry the girl off his back. Pale Girl, who was crawling on all fours underneath everyone's legs, crawled to the man and sank her fangs into his ankles. The man let out a high-pitched scream, and promptly kicked Pale Girl in the face, knocking her back.

Yellowjacket, seeing her blood sister in danger, threw back her head, before sinking her teeth in the man's shoulder. The man let out a loud, agonizing scream, one that pierced Yellowjacket's ears.

Yellowjacket jumped off the man's back, her teeth aching. Covering her mouth, she pulled her hand away, and was surprised to see blood on it. She'd never noticed blood when she'd bitten people before.

Clenching her bloody hand, she reluctantly continued her assault.

Meanwhile, the doors to one building opened, and Ghoul and Noose walked outside. Ghoul was wiping tears out of her eyes as she observed what was transpiring.

"W-What's going on?" She asked through watery eyes.

"Duck!" Noose shouted, and pulled Ghoul to the ground as a hail of bullets rained in their direction.

The zombies swarmed on the Freaks in the trucks. Most of them had been overwhelmed and infected by the zombies.

"Retreat!" One Freak shouted, and the few remaining Freaks dove into their truck and drove off down the street where they came. The zombies briefly pursued them, but Yellowjacket rushed out in front of them and shouted, "Stop!"

The zombies immediately halted their advance. Yellowjacket shook her head silently, warning them not to go any further.

"Hey, we did it!" George shouted, trying to invigorate the zombies. The zombies just stared at him in confusion with lifeless eyes, and George shrunk down in embarrassment.

Jill walked through the crowd of zombies. As she did, her eyes landed on Ghoul and Noose, who were still lying on the ground, unaware that the bullets had stopped. She gasped, remembering them.

Jill rushed to Yellowjacket and took her by the hand, pulling her away from the crowd of zombies.

"Look," She whispered, pointing at Ghoul and Noose. Yellowjacket's eyes widened in shock.

'Hey, that's-" She started, but Jill clasped a hand over her mouth, and silently led her back to the building.

"Mom, that's Ghoul and Noose," Yellowjacket whispered to her, but Jill ushered her inside the building. She looked back out, making sure Ghoul and Noose hadn't seen her daughter. They hadn't.

Jill then breathed a sigh of relief, and shut the door.

* * *

"Mom, what are you doing?" Yellowjacket asked once they were inside. "Those are my friends."

"They tried to kill me and Bill," Jill said to her. "They are not your friends. They're the ones who've been keeping you. . . zombie-like all this time. Stay away from them!"

"But, mother-"

Jill held up her hand. "We have to figure out a way to get to Bill," She told her. "You can talk with George and Mary, and their two friends. Blackjacket, too. But stay far away from those Ghoul and Noose people."

Yellowjacket's took a step back, a little hurt. "I can cure them," She said to her mother. "I can make them. . . normal. I've been doing it with Blackjacket. Patient Zero listens to me. They listen to me. I don't know why, but they do."

"Not now, Riley," Jill said. "You don't know that for sure.

"Ghoul and Noose protected me," Yellowjacket mumbled lowly, and turned and walked up the stairs. Jill watched her go up, and vanish into the darkness.

Jill sighed, and turned back to the door.

She had to find Bill. Fast.

* * *

Bill and Margaret walked past the crowd of people in the Freak building. Bill's eyes were narrowed as he headed towards the steel doors leading to upstairs.

"Where are we going?" Margaret whispered to him. "That's where the Boss stays. Nobody goes up unless he tells us to."

"You can stay behind, but there's something funny going on with that man," Bill told her. "I don't know what, but he's hiding something. He knows Patient Zero, I know it. I'm going to find out what's the cause of this."

Bill then pushed through the steel doors, and started walking up the steel stairs.

"Yellowjacket's father, wait," Margaret said, and she dashed through the steel doors right before they closed.

With a clanging sound, the doors closed, Bill and Margaret shut inside. The two looked up at the long flight of stairs in front of them.

There was no going back now. Now, all that was left was up.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	52. Secrets Revealed

_Al Drin Hoshizora: Yeah I'm pretty sure everyone's going to side with the Others._

 _Korrasami 88: Well, what did you expect her to call him?_

 _NexusOscura: I was actually planning to show Yellowjacket's emotions, really._

 _The Batista: Oh, really?_

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Moving on._

 _MrScourch: You know, I notice that you and Antha1 tend to give the reviews I love the most. First, Yellowjacket did bite someone (I actually edited the last chapter to make it more clear). One of your two guesses was correct._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Your chocolate knife won't do jack._

 _Candlehead: Maybe...maybe not._

 _I am a burglar: They don't want your money._

 _Antha1: General or not, Jill's still Yellowjacket's mom._

* * *

Bill and Margaret quietly walked up the stairs leading to the Boss' personal quarters. The metal stairs clanged whenever they stomped on it, so they had to tread carefully, lest a guard hear them.

When they reached the top of the stairs, Bill opened the door, and stepped inside. Turning to Margaret, he said, "Last chance. Go back."

Margaret paused a moment, then shook her head. Bill sighed, and gestured for her to follow him as they entered the dark corridors. Margaret huddled up next to Bill for protection.

"What are we looking for?" Margaret whispered.

"Something's odd with the Boss," Bill said. "There's no way my daughter freed Patient Zero without a reason. He knows something about that girl, and I'm going to find out what."

"The Boss is up here, though," Margaret warned.

Bill stopped, and turned to stare at her. "I spent a year having to sneak past hordes of zombies," He pointed out to her. "You think that's easy?"

Margaret was about to say something, but then shook her head. The two heard snoring coming from a room that was slightly opened, and the two tiptoed towards it. Staring through the crack in the room, the two saw the Boss, lying in his bed.

Bill raised an eyebrow. Even in sleep, the Boss was still wearing his sunglasses.

"Look," Margaret whispered, pointing at the wall. Boss looked up at the wall, and saw a familiar photo plastered on it.

The picture showed a sickly looking girl dressed in a patient's outfit. She had pale skin, white hair that looked to be falling out, and seemed to be about ten years of age.

Bill's eyes widened as he quickly realized that he was staring at none other than a pre-infected Patient Zero.

Bill stepped away from the room, deep in thought. Why did the Boss have a picture of Patient Zero before she was infected. It became clearer now that he must have had something to do with the girl prior to her becoming a zombie.

"Look," Margaret whispered once more, gesturing to a table. Bill turned to it, and saw the table had several knives, needles, and darts on them.

Bill walked over to the table. He recalled hearing a crash above right before Yellowjacket and Patient Zero fled; could it be that it was the table that he'd heard fall.

turning to Margaret, Bill said, "Something happened up here. And the Boss knows it."

The two heard footsteps coming from within the Boss' room, and they quickly ran to hide. Moments later, the door opened, and the Boss shambled outside into the corridors. He wandered towards the table.

Bill and Margaret hid in a dark corner, out of view of the Boss. They watched as the Boss lumbered through the room absentmindedly.

Like a zombie.

Bill's eyes narrowed, and his gaze wandered to the Boss' glasses. He wanted those glasses off.

Bill's eyes turned to a shelving rack, which had an empty container on it. Thinking quickly, Bill grabbed the container and, and rolled it in the Boss' direction. The Boss didn't see the container, and his foot landed on the rolling container. The Boss soundlessly slipped through the air, and landed on the ground with a thud.

Just as Bill hoped, his glasses clattered off his face and onto the ground.

"Move," Bill whispered to Margaret, and the two walked towards the Boss, who was rubbing his sore head. Bill suddenly grabbed Margaret's own glasses, pulled them off, and set them on the ground next to the Boss without him noticing.

Still concealed in darkness, Bill and Margaret watched as the Boss uncovered his eyes.

Bill and Margaret almost gasped, but they stayed quiet.

The Boss had lifeless eyes, just like a zombie.

The Boss reached out, and his hands rested on Margaret's glasses. As he picked up the glasses, Bill rolled past him and grabbed the Boss' real glasses. Then, he and Margaret took off down the hallway before the Boss could react.

The moment they were out of earshot, Bill and Margaret ran towards the door, closed it, and rested against it, breathing heavily after their lucky escape.

Margaret looked up at Bill, her own lifeless eyes contorted in shock.

"He's a. . . he's a zombie," She whispered in surprise.

Bill nodded. Now that he knew the truth, he wasn't going to keep it to himself.

Everyone in the building needed to know the truth now.

* * *

Yellowjacket walked through the building towards Pale Girl's room. After the Freaks had fled, Pale Girl had returned to her building and taken the gun as well.

Yellowjacket reached the door, opened it, and walked in on Pale Girl as she was pacing. Pale Girl turned and growled, but Yellowjacket stood tall and strode in without showing any fear.

Pale Girl flinched as Yellowjacket's new confidence. As Yellowjacket approached her, she shrunk down a bit.

The moment she was within arm's reach, Yellowjacket extended an arm to Pale Girl. The feral zombie stared at it, hesitant.

"Come on," Yellowjacket said. "Things are going to change around here."

Pale Girl narrowed her eyes. Yellowjacket gestured to her, and started walking to the door. Hesitantly, Pale Girl stalked after her on all fours. The moment they left the room, Pale Girl got onto her feet, and the two walked through the building.

Before long, they were joined by Yellowjacket's five zombie companions. Pale Girl kept a distance away from them, not saying a word.

The moment they left the building, the seven walked out into the crowd of zombies. Yellowjacket shook Pale Girl, and the feral girl let out a growl to get the zombies attention.

Yellowjacket walked up to a car, stood onto it, and stood tall so all the zombies could see. Holding Pale Girl's gun in her hands, she raised it above her head.

Once she was sure all eyes were on her, Yellowjacket spoke.

"No more will Others be alone!" She shouted out. "Together! We are powerful!"

The zombies all crowded around, staring at the strange zombie girl. Pale Girl glared at them, hissing to make sure they were all listening.

"Others! Are! One!" Yellowjacket shouted out to them. "Alone, we are weak! Together, we are strong!"

Surprisingly, the Others listened.

* * *

 _ **(In Yellowjacket's Mind)**_

"What are we doing?" Nerve whispered nervously. "Why are we attracting attention to ourselves?"

"It's time for the Others to regain their. . . smarts, I think," Star explained to the purple emotion. "With Yellowjacket leading the way, we'll steer them in the right direction yet!"

Teardrop walked up. "What about Ghoul and Noose?" She asked. "Aren't they here? Mother told us not to go near them."

"Yeah, that," Star said, a little conflicted. "Hopefully, they won't notice us. But enough of that. It's time for these Others to become human again!"

* * *

 _Read and review._


	53. Taking Lead

_Korrasami 88: Well, those are my two main inspirations._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Why evacuate when there are more zombies outside?_

 _I am a burglar: Um, sure._

 _MrScourch: It's less that he's a zombie, and more about what his past is with Pale Girl. As for Riley, I think she got over it (her identity crisis, that is)._

 _Antha1: We'll see Sawbones soon. And yes, nobody else knows that the Boss is a zombie._

 _The Batista: Okay._

 _Candlehead: Okay._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Okay._

 _Minty Zaki: Well, the hero is a zombie..._

 _Glody Orangeboar: See if that helps._

 _GalaxyEcho: Not really._

* * *

The Boss wandered through his dark corridors, still rubbing his sore head.

He didn't know how that canister had somehow rolled across the floor and into his path, especially since he had carefully placed it on the shelving rack. He figured it had gotten loose somehow.

He hoped that his men would return soon, and with Patient Zero in their grasp. Then, he hoped, he could continue trying to find that cure.

Then everything would return to normal.

As the Boss thought to himself, he thought he could hear faint screaming coming from downstairs. The screaming and shouting grew, and the Boss briefly wandered if a feral zombie had gotten into the building.

Before he could check out what was going on, he heard loud footsteps coming up the metal stairs leading to his personal quarters. A lot of footsteps.

The door swung open, and the Boss whirled around to see his men charged inside, Joe at the head. The moment they were inside, their eyes widened in shock and disbelief.

"What?" The Boss asked, curious. "Why are you here? What's going on?"

Joe opened and closed his mouth before speaking. "Y-You. . . you're a zombie," He sputtered, pointing a wobbly finger at him.

The Boss narrowed his eyes, and turned his head to see if Joe was talking to someone else. Turning back to Joe, he asked, "Me? No I'm not."

Joe's finger pointed up the Boss' eyes. "You're eyes," He whispered. "They're dead."

The Boss' eyes widened in shock. How could they see his eyes? He was wearing his-

The Boss tore down towards the nearest mirror to get a look at himself. Instantly, he saw, in his reflection, that he wasn't wearing the black sunglasses that concealed his eyes. He was wearing small, transparent glasses that revealed how he truly looked.

"But how?" He sputtered in disbelief. "Where did these come from?"

"Boss?" One of his men asked hesitantly. "What's going on?'

"Indeed," A new voice said, and the Boss whirled around to see Bill enter the quarters now, a gun in his hand. He raised the gun and pointed it at the Boss.

Instantly, the Boss knew who was to blame. "You," He growled, pointing a finger at Bill. He tore off his glasses and threw them away.

"I told everyone," Bill said. "They all know."

Desperate, the Boss asked, "So what if I'm a zombie? There are smart ones here, too."

"It's not that," Bill said, aiming the gun at the Boss, a dark glare in his eyes. "You have an obsession with Patient Zero, don't you."

"She's the cause of all of this," The Boss reminded them. "I have to find her, so we can find a cure."

"I believe you," Bill confessed, truth in his voice. He briefly lowered the gun, and said, "But how do you know she's Patient Zero?"

"What?" The Boss asked, irritated. Bill turned and kicked open the door leading to the Boss' dark room, revealing the picture of Patient Zero pre-infection.

"Did any of you guys notice that he had a picture of her before she was infected?" Bill asked. "I saw it at the hospital. You know something about her that you're not telling us, Boss."

"That's not her before she was infected," The Boss blurted out in a rage. "That's her in the first stage, before she infected me-" He shut up when he realized what he had just said.

Bill stared at the Boss hard. For the first time, he saw fear in the Boss' eyes.

"You know," Bill whispered. "You know what caused this whole infection. Tell us. . . tell _me_. . . how Patient Zero got infected."

The Boss stared at Bill with weary eyes. He let out a deep sigh.

"All I wanted was to help people. But instead, everything went to Hell."

* * *

Ever since Yellowjacket had gotten the attention of the Others, she'd spent the day trying to teach them basic human things. She tried to get them to speak properly, and how to write things, and also how to shoot a gun.

With Pale Girl by her side, the zombies listened, to an extent.

"Things are going to change around here," She told the Others, holding the gun up in the air. "Then, I have a plan for all of you!"

The zombies howled out in agreement, all surrounding her. Yellowjacket smiled a bit.

Turning to Pale Girl, she nodded to her. The feral zombie girl said nothing, but gave a fanged grin in return.

Standing at the side, Jill stood with her former group members. Turning to Sir and Bob, she said, "I want you to make sure that nothing goes wrong during all of this."

"Do we really?" Bob asked, sighing. Jill glared at him, and he took a step back and said, "Okay."

Turning to Sir, Jill whispered, "Also, don't tell anyone else, but I'm not really an Other."

"What?!" The group shouted out in surprise. Jill shushed them as some of the Others briefly turned to stare at them, before turning to look back at Yellowjacket.

"I'm in disguise," Jill explained to the group. "Don't tell anyone else this, okay?"

"Sure," Sir grumbled out, and turned to wander away with the group. Jill sighed, and then turned to the window where Ghoul and Noose were staying.

She narrowed her eyes. She just hoped those two didn't come across Riley while they were staying here.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	54. Education

_Korrasami 88: You'll find out... eventually._

 _NexusOscura: Okay._

 _I am a burglar: Fine._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: You didn't?_

 _MrScourch: With all the "smart" zombies she's seen, yes, she's becoming more trusting. That, and this is her former group she's dealing with._

 _The Batista: What?_

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Seriously? It took you this long to figure it out?_

 _Antha1: Ghoul and Noose are spending their time locked up in their room. Anyways, as for the Boss (and I'm saying this to everyone here) when he reveals his and Pale Girl's past, it's going to be the_ truth. _No lies._

* * *

During the next few days, Yellowjacket continued the process of properly educating the Others in intellect. It was easier than she'd expected; over time, Yellowjacket had realized that she could communicate with Others in a way that they listened to her. And with Pale Girl by her side, things went by relatively smoothly.

"My name is Yellowjacket," She told the Other on the first day, and to demonstrate, she wrote her name on a large blackboard in huge letters with a marker. The word **Yellowjacket** soon adorned the black board. The Others hissed and growled towards her.

"You write using this," She explained to them, holding up the marker for all of them to see.

Next to her, Pale Girl nudged her, and pulled out her gun. Yellowjacket sighed, and took it in her hands.

"To shoot a gun, you pull this," She put her finger on the trigger. "If you can master that, that's one more advantage you have over the Freaks."

The Others all cackled out in response.

"It's working," Yellowjacket whispered to Pale Girl. The younger zombie hissed in response, and motioned with her arms. When Yellowjacket didn't get it, Pale Girl spread her arms wide, and then shut them together.

"You're telling me. . . how to trap someone?" Yellowjacket guessed. Had it been anyone else, that wouldn't have been Yellowjacket's first guess. However, she'd recognized that most of Pale Girl's thought processes involved violence.

Predictably, Pale Girl nodded, and laughed.

Yellowjacket sighed. She hoped that teaching the Others more tactics to be violent would be a secondary issue.

"Okay," She said, turning to the crowd. "This is how you-"

* * *

During some periods of the day, mainly the morning and the noon, Pale Girl would stalk off to the docks to be alone. She had a limited attention span, and frankly, Yellowjacket's (or was it Riley? She hadn't quite figured it out.) "education lessons" bored her if it didn't include battle tactics.

After all, they'd need that if they were to storm the Boss' hideout. Yellowjacket (she'd call her that for now) may not have been thinking in those terms, but Pale Girl knew it was only a matter of time before it happened.

"Hey!"

Pale Girl slowly turned around, her eyes narrowed. She saw it was that 'George' guy that Yellowjacket introduced her to some time ago.

'George' was currently holding a dolly.

"Since we're going to be staying here, I figured, since little girls like dolls, you'd like one," He said, an optimistic smile on his face.

It made her nauseous. The doll and his smile.

Before George could react, Pale Girl soared towards him and rammed right into him, sending him flying through the air. Zombies weren't that hard to topple.

"No!" George shouted out as he soared off the ground and into harbor below. Pale Girl heard a splashing sound, and then turned to walk away.

She wouldn't let them get their hopes up. She didn't have friends, and never would. She didn't need any.

* * *

Ghoul lay in her bed, her arms folded over her chest. Ever since she'd started regaining her memories of her past, however faint, one of the things she'd remembered was how much she hated crowded areas. And recently, the streets had become more crowded than usual.

"Ghoul, you got to get some fresh air," Noose told her. "You're skins going pale."

Ghoul turned to stare at him. "My skin's _always_ been pale," She reminded him.

"Oh," Noose said, a little embarrassed.

Unexpectedly, the two heard a knock on the door. Ghoul snapped up, surprised. Who would be trying to get into her room?

Getting out of bed, Ghoul shuffled over to the door, wrapped a clawed hand over the doorknob, and swung it open. Standing at the door, she was met with four college-aged Others. Twins, who looked to be the youngest, a blonde woman, and a giant Other with red hair.

"Hi," George said to Ghoul. She noticed that he was soaking wet, and wondered where he'd been.

"Oh, it's just a bunch of kids," Ghoul sneered, and was about to shut the door when Mary put her hand forward, preventing the door from shutting.

"Wait, we're here because of a friend," Mary explained to the older woman.

"Who?" Ghoul asked, frankly uninterested.

"I. . . can't say," Mary muttered. Holding out a book, she said, "She wants us to educate you."

Ghoul blinked once, a dull look in her eyes. Then, she shut the door in the quartet's face. The four heard her shuffling back to bed, then slump down on top of it.

The four then turned to the end of the hallway, and Rob whispered, "Yellowjacket, come out?"

The blonde zombie girl peaked out from behind a corner. "How are they?" She whispered. She knew she was risking a lot coming here, especially since she knew Jill didn't want her to come anywhere near Ghoul and Noose.

"They're. . . fine?" Mary said, shrugging. "This Ghoul chick doesn't seem too happy, though?"

"You think she misses me?" Yellowjacket asked, half-hopeful.

"I don't know," George said, scratching his head. "Has she acted like this when you were here?"

Yellowjacket bit her lip. She truly wanted to go inside that room and show herself to Ghoul and Noose and reveal that she was fine. But what would Jill think? And what would Ghoul and Noose do if they found out how. . . freakish she'd become?

Yellowjacket sighed, and turned away.

"Come on, let's go back outside," She said, keeping her voice low so that Ghoul and Noose didn't hear her.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	55. The Visit

_Korrasami 88: Not really._

 _I am a burglar: Fine._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: I know._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Can we not bring up unrelated stories here?_

 _MrScourch: Yeah, Sawbones' is still part of the story._

 _Creamy Buttercap: How about no?_

 _Candlehead: Oh? Well, all you need to do is get infected, and then sign up._

 _Minty Zaki: Yes, they've met._

 _Antha1: Are you referencing Bob the Builder?_

* * *

The moon shone brightly outside in the dead of night above the city. The streets were empty and vacant, with not a soul outside.

Within her room in the apartment, Ghoul lay asleep on her bed, the moon illuminating her pale skin. Half of the blanket was on the floor, leaving her upper body uncovered. Her snoring echoed through the apartment.

Noose was in a different section of the apartment. He'd learned never to disturb his younger companion while she was asleep. He slept in a small room nearby.

As Ghoul slept, the door to her room creaked open a bit. Ghoul made a snorting noise at the sound, but then continued snoring. The door remained slightly open, then was pushed the entire way open.

Standing at the door was Yellowjacket.

The young zombie girl trembled as she stood at the entrance of the door. She knew she was disobeying her mother by coming to Ghoul's room, but she simply couldn't control herself. With the knowledge that one of her companions had been in the same general area as her, how could she not come by and visit?

With a shaky leg, Yellowjacket stepped into the room. Ghoul continued snoring, not noticing that someone else was in the room with her.

Soon, Yellowjacket was standing by the bed, watching Ghoul as she slept. For a second, she could hear a voice in her head, whispering, _"Go back."_

The voice repeated in her mind, but Yellowjacket felt an urge to resist it. Slowly, she raised her right arm, and stretched it towards Ghoul. Her breathing slowed to a stop.

Her hand rested on Ghoul's shoulder. The older zombie stopped snoring.

"G-Ghoul," Yellowjacket whispered, lightly shaking the Other. Ghoul had stopped snoring, but she was still asleep.

"Ghoul," Yellowjacket said, her voice a little louder. She stopped shaking her as Ghoul slowly began to stir awake.

Yellowjacket took a step away as Ghoul's arms stretched out, and the older zombie let out a yawn. Slightly sitting up, Ghoul's eyes creaked open.

Yellowjacket noticed that Ghoul's eyes looked a little more 'alive' now.

Slowly, Ghoul turned around to face Yellowjacket, her mouth opening and closing. She still looked half-asleep as her eyes came to rest on Yellowjacket. The two stared at each other for a few seconds, silent.

"G-Ghoul?" Yellowjacket whispered.

Ghoul squinted her eyes. "Yellowjacket?" She whispered, still sounding sleepy.

"H-Hi," Yellowjacket greeted, waving at her. "I, uh, came to visit you."

"V-Visit?" Ghoul asked, closing one eye while keeping the other open. She yawned again, and her head lolled to the side. Yellowjacket raised an eyebrow. She'd have thought Ghoul would have been more ecstatic to see her.

"Yeah," The young zombie said, nodding. She took a step forward, and leaned on the pillows. "So, what have you been doing these past few days?"

"Stuff," Ghoul said, rubbing her nose. "Kind of boring. Sawbones' left, looking for you."

Yellowjacket narrowed her eyes. _So that's why I haven't seen him here_ , She thought.

Ghoul rested back down on the pillow. "I'm kind of sleepy, here," She said, yawning once more. "Could you go? I'm tired."

Yellowjacket's eyes widened in surprise, and then realization kicked in.

 _She thinks she's dreaming,_ She realized. _She doesn't think I'm here._

Ghoul closed her eyes, and whispered, "Goodnight, Yellowjacket."

Yellowjacket frowned, upset. This wasn't how she envisioned reuniting with Ghoul would pan out. Sadly, she said, "Goodnight, Ghoul." She then leaned down and kissed Ghoul on the forehead.

Then, she turned and left the room.

* * *

 _ **(In Ghoul's Mind)**_

Teardrop stood at Ghoul's console, a confused look on her face.

". . . Did I just see Yellowjacket?" She said to herself, confused. How could that be? The last she'd seen her, she'd been taken by the Freaks. There was no way she could be here. . .

"Everyone!" Teardrop shouted out. Slowly, the other emotions shuffled out of their rooms, a drowsy look in their eyes.

"God, Teardrop, why do you have to wake us up so late?" Brick asked, a frustrated look on her face. "I was having a dream about eating a Freak, and you just ruined it!"

"Guys, it's important," Teardrop told the group as they crowded around the console. "I think I just saw Yellowjacket."

The emotions stared at Teardrop silently. Slowly, their drowsy expressions changed to that of surprise.

"What?!" Star asked, her glow brightening. "She was here? How?"

"Well, it was in the night," Teardrop explained to the group. "We were sleeping, and I saw Yellowjacket at the bed. We were talking, and she asked how we were doing. Then she left."

The emotions continued to stare at Teardrop, skeptical.

"That can't be true!" Brick snapped at Teardrop. "We saw Yellowjacket get taken by those Freaks! There is no way she was here!"

"But Ghoul saw her-"

"She was probably just hallucinating because we miss her," Star comforted Teardrop. "She wasn't really there. If she was, we'd have seen her a lot sooner."

"But," Teardrop started, her lip quivering. "But. . ."

"It's okay," Star consoled the blue emotion. "We all miss Yellowjacket. But you just have to accept that she's not here at the moment. Maybe we'll see her again. But not right now."

Teardrop opened her mouth to protest, but then she quieted down. Tears started brimming in her eyes.

"Come on, let's get some rest," Star said to Teardrop. "Maybe when Ghoul wakes up, things will be brighter."

* * *

Jill sat in her room, awake. She tapped her foot on the ground impatiently as she awaited Yellowjacket to return.

She didn't know where her daughter had gone, but she hoped she'd be back soon. There was no way Yellowjacket had decided to just run off and not tell her. She sighed.

The door opened, and for a moment, Jill thought it was Yellowjacket. Instead, Mary walked into the room.

Jill noticed that Mary's skin wasn't as pale now. Her eyes were a darker shade of blue as well. The twenty-year-old walked over and sat down on the bed, rubbing her tired eyes.

"What are you doing awake?" Jill asked the younger girl. Mary shrugged.

"I don't know," She said, getting onto the bed and hugging her knees. "Why are you awake?"

"I'm just waiting for my daughter," Jill said to her. "She'll come back, eventually."

The two were silent for a moment. Then, a thought entered Jill's mind, and she said, "Did you hear what she said?"

"What?" Mary asked, leaning closer to Jill.

"She called me mother," Jill said to Mary, her eyes glistening. "She said that I was her mother. I'm her mother!" A smile suddenly grew on her face.

Mary stared at her, a blank look on her face. Jill was surprised to see Mary's lip quivering, and tears brimming in her eyes.

Suddenly, Mary burst out into tears and she suddenly wrapped her arms around Jill, sobbing. The older woman was taken aback by Mary's sudden actions.

"What's going on?!" Jill asked as Mary continued to cry.

"I wish I had a mommy!" Mary sobbed as she continued to hold onto Jill. Tears dripped onto Jill's dress, and Mary squeezed Jill tight.

Jill hesitantly hugged Mary. "There, there," She comforted, shifting her eyes uncomfortably. "It's alright." She stroked Mary's hair as the younger girl continued to sob. She slowly rocked Mary back and forth in her arms to sooth her.

Standing at the door, out of view of both of them, Pale Girl watched on, her lifeless eyes unblinking.

The feral girl straightened up, and rested on the wall. She let out a deep sigh, and closed her eyes.

Then, slowly, she shuffled down the dark hallways gloomily.

* * *

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	56. The Boss' Tale

_I am a burglar: Careful, she might hear you._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: You brought up a different story._

 _Korrasami 88: I wonder..._

 _MrScourch: These will be answered... eventually._

 _NexusOscura: Glad it was heartwarming._

 _The Batista: Cry like a man._

 _Antha1: None of them are._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: I don't think that would end well._

 _Creamy Buttercap: *sigh*_

 _Candlehead: Indeed._

 _Js: Try to keep up next time._

 _A/N: Before I begin this chapter, I just want to remind you that the Boss is NOT lying in this chapter. Everything he says is true, just in case you're wondering._

* * *

The Boss sat alone in a dark cell room, his lifeless eyes wandering about.

After his secret had been exposed to the entirety of the building, the Boss had refused to reveal what had caused the infection to spread throughout the city. He had kept silent and simply gave himself up. He had locked himself away in a small cell, refusing to come out.

He'd been like this for days, waiting for when someone would inevitably open the door.

And, eventually, it did.

The Boss instinctively covered his eyes as a ray of light entered the room. Squinting in the blinding light, the Boss uncovered his eyes to see who had entered his lonely cell.

It was Bill. The older man had a look of dourness, and a hunger for answers. The Boss could see a few men outside the room, but they didn't enter. Bill came in alone.

Bill stared at the Boss coldly, and slowly shut the door. Inside the cell, he flickered on the light, and sat down on the opposite side of the room. The Boss could faintly see a gun in Bill's pocket.

For an amount of time, all the two did was stare at each other, as with adjusting the situation before they spoke. Their eyes were both narrowed at each other, filled with pure contempt for one another.

The Boss spoke first. "So, how's life treating you?" He asked, dry sarcasm rolling off his tongue.

Bill didn't lose the glare. "It could be better," He said, no emotion evident.

"Couldn't it always?" The Boss asked. "No matter at what stage you are in life, things could always 'be better'. But, how are things doing now?'

"Joe's in charge for now," Bill explained, cracking his neck. "But enough about that. You know why I'm here."

The Boss scoffed, his lifeless eyes squinting. "You want answers, don't you?" He asked, a bitter frown on his face. "You want to know how Patient Zero got infected, and how I became Patient 1. Bet you want to know why I can still think, and remember, don't you?"

Bill nodded, his eyebrows furrowed.

"Well, don't fear, because your questions shall be answered," The Boss said, gritting his teeth. "But, I want you to know something: this will not change a thing. You may think it will, but it won't. Knowing the truth won't cure your daughter, or the rest of this stinking city. It won't get you the life you so desperately want back."

"Just tell me," Bill said, keeping back his anger.

The Boss' gaze softened, and he let out a deep sigh. "You won't believe what some people used to be before the apocalypse happened," He said. "Joe here was once a construction worker. I bet before this whole epidemic happened, you weren't the badass were you now, were you?"

Bill shook his head. "Not at all," He confessed.

"Good," The Boss said, then took a deep breath. With a hint of embarrassment, he admitted, "Before I was infected, I was just the nameless son of a doctor, unmarried and living with my old man."

"Oh?" Bill asked. "I bet you're not lying about nameless. You don't remember your name, do you."

"Not at all," The Boss said, as if he had no shame in admitting it. "Why else do you think they call me boss? But anyways, back to the story. My old man was ambitious, and maybe not right on the head. He wanted to find cures to everything. Blindness, HIV, rabies, you name it. It all started when my mom caught rabies and kicked the bucket. But I hardly remember her, though." In spite of that, the Boss looked genuinely sad for a moment.

"Get on with the story," Bill said, admittedly disinterested in the Boss' past. "When did Patient Zero come in?"

Bill caught a glint in the Boss' eyes. "One day, a young girl who didn't remember anything stumbled into the neighborhood," The Boss admitted. "She had amnesia, it seemed."

"How?" Bill asked.

"Hey, I don't know everything," The Boss said, rolling his eyes. "The girl didn't remember her mother, father, anything. She was just a poor child my neighbor found walking down the streets."

"What happened next?" Bill questioned, curious. Patient Zero having amnesia stood out to him. Could this have been one of the affects the infection had on others. Losing memories?

"The girl hung around for a few days," The Boss recalled. "Me and my dad saw her a couple times."

"And?"

"One day, the girl got bit by a rabid dog," The Boss blurted out. "The dog was shot, and we found out it had the virus. But the girl just vanished."

"What happened to her?"

"I thought she was dead," The Boss admitted, and he sounded baffled. "How could you survive rabies without getting a vaccination. But, a couple weeks later, we found her. Alive."

"We?"

"My dad couldn't believe it," The Boss said, and his eyes widened. "How did she survive, we don't know. But my dad wanted answers, so he took her in to. . . test her."

"Test?"

"He wanted to see if he could make some sort of cure by using her," The Boss said, and he looked and sounded disgusted. "I didn't want to take part in it, but he told me it could save lives. Like my mom."

"But it went wrong," Bill guessed with a sigh. "Your dad screwed up, didn't he? Your test run on her made the infection worse, and that caused the outbreak, didn't it?"

The Boss let out a sigh. "You're right," He admitted. "One day, the girl's skin turned pale. Her nails turned into claws, and she grew fangs. We thought she was dead, but she wasn't. She was an. . . Other."

"What happened next?" Bill asked, though he knew the answer already.

"She got loose and killed my old man, right before my eyes," The Boss admitted, narrowing his eyes. "Then, she bit me, and took off running."

"That's how you got infected?" Bill asked. "But how did you retain your memories?"

"I fought," The Boss said. "I clung to those memories like my life depended on it. I could feel them drifting, but I did my best to retain them. I lost a few unimportant things - my name, being one - but I didn't lose my mind."

"But the girl did," Bill said.

"I heard it on the news," The Boss said, shrugging his shoulders. "Heard how the girl scratched someone's arm. For a couple days, it was all over the news that there was some savage girl, biting and scratching whoever came up to her. They didn't know until it was too late that she was spreading the infection. Eventually, it came to this city."

"And now my daughter is one of them," Bill said. He stood up, and said, "Thank you, but I've heard enough."

"My dad did it to help people," The Boss briefly defended.

"And look what came from that," Bill said, hatred evident in his voice. "I don't give a damn about intentions, I care about what came from those intentions. And you're dad and his 'cause' destroyed him. This city. My family."

The Boss opened his mouth to respond but he didn't say anything. He just lowered his head, and closed his eyes. Bill stared at him for a moment, then exited the room. He shut the door, leaving the Boss in darkness.

The moment he was outside, Joe came up to him. "I heard the whole story," He said. "So, now what do we do with him?"

"Leave him," Bill said, raising his hand. "He means nothing."

"But-"

"This doesn't change anything," Bill said to Joe sternly. "It doesn't change anything at all."

With that, he walked away.

* * *

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	57. New Development

_Korrasami 88: Well we have to have some backstory in here._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Yeah, don't call him that._

 _MrScourch: The vaccine doesn't work after a certain period of time... specifically, when symptoms start showing._

 _I am a burglar: How will it affect your robbery missions?  
_

 _Antha1: Bill just doesn't care._

 _The Batista: You talkin' to me?_

 _Minty Zaki: I don't know._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: He just explained how this thing started._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Of course he has a purpose: he's part of the Pale Girl's CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT._

 _Js: That is all._

* * *

A hockey puck soared past Blackjacket's ear and cracked against the side of the brick wall.

"Score!" Yellowjacket shouted out in glee, raising the hockey stick in the air. Next to her, a group of Others watched on in vague interest, and some of them groaned out, "Yaaaaaaaayyyyy. . ."

"Are you sure you want to keep playing, Blackjacket?" Yellowjacket asked, lowering the stick. "You haven't scored one goal."

"Meh," Blackjacket said, looking away. "More interested in ACDC."

". . . What?" Yellowjacket asked bluntly.

Watching them, Bill and Jill's former group chattered among themselves. For a group of zombies, they were surprisingly talkative.

"Hey, I remember when I played ACDC," One of them pointed out.

"I remember when I still had my iPod," Another said bitterly. Their talking attracted the attention of Yellowjacket. The hockey stick in her hand clattered onto the ground.

"What's an iPod?" She asked the group.

"It's something you hold in your hand," Bob explained to her. "I should know; one guy had it before we were bitten."

Yellowjacket narrowed her eyes. "How do you know what your life was like before you were. . . you know?" She questioned. She knew she hadn't remembered her past until she met Bill and Jill.

Sir scratched his balding head. "So you see, when we woke up, we remembered each other," He said to him. "I remembered that one guy who had the bullet wound, and then I thought to myself 'Hey, that's the guy who you shot'."

"That was it?" Blackjacket asked, baffled. "I couldn't remember a thing when I got infected."

"Well, where were you?" Yellowjacket asked, one eyebrow raised.

"I was at a. . . concert," Blackjacket said. "Is that what you call it?"

"Yeah," Bob answered.

"Yeah," Blackjacket said, putting his hands in his pocket. "Then these weird guys ran in. One of them looked kind of ghoulish, one was fat, and the one that bit me had knives in his hands-"

"Okay, I think we've heard enough!" Yellowjacket interrupted. As all eyes turned to her, she shrunk down, her eyes shifting.

"Well, what are we standing around here for?" She asked, shrugging nonchalantly. "Aren't we playing hockey? Hockey, anyone?"

* * *

"You know, it's a good thing someone had a _Warm Bodies_ book lying around," Shelley pointed out as she flipped through it. "I'm halfway through already."

"Hooray," Mary said sarcastically. She stood up, then said, "This shirt is stiff. I'm going to change."

"Yeah, you do that," George said, uninterested.

Mary was about to pull up her shirt, then said, "Could you. . . uh, look away. . ."

"What?" George asked, sitting up on the bed. "I'm your brother."

". . . Fair enough," Mary said, and started to change. As she did, the door swung open and Rob strolled in.

"Hey, so Patient Zero said she's. . . Sweet mother of Zuul," He covered his eyes and looked away as Mary paused, just in the process of putting on her new blouse.

"I knew this was bound to happen," Shelley said, shaking her head. "So, what did Patient Zero say?"

"She can talk?" George asked in disbelief.

Rob shrugged, and stepped out of the way. Immediately, Pale Girl ran towards the door, a fanged grin on her face.

The three Others' eyes widened. Pale Girl was out of her white dress, and was wearing a black t-shirt and ripped blue jeans. She almost looked like a completely different person, if she hadn't still looked like a feral child.

Pale Girl opened her mouth in a smile, and she nodded at the three, as if she was expecting them to comment.

"Um, you look nice?" Mary said, before quickly putting on her dress.

Pale Girl beamed, which looked very strange coming from a corpse-looking creature, and she dashed out of the room on all fours.

* * *

 _ **(In Mary's Mind)**_

"The heck was that?" Pixie asked, staring in disbelief at the door where Pale Girl once stood. "She looked like a female Tarzan if he stumbled upon clothes."

"Now, Pixie, remember your manners," Star said, waving a finger in front of her. "Besides, if was about time she got out of that dingy-looking dress."

"Oh, you mean like we did just now?" Pixie asked, putting her hands on her hips. "Yeah, we sure gave Rob an eyeful!"

"Yeah, great idea, Teardrop," Brick chastised the blue emotion.

Teardrop shrugged. "We didn't show too much. . . did we?" She asked.

"It's funny, but I wouldn't be complaining if we did," Star said, leaning on the console with a grin.

The four other emotions went silent, and stared at Star, their eyebrows raised.

"What?" Star asked.

* * *

In another section of the city, Sawbones shambled down the empty streets, grumbling. The three feral zombies shuffled behind him.

After he had met up with the three in the forest, he'd learned that they had encountered that woman who had taken Yellowjacket, but had let them get away. All he knew was that she was with a group now, and she had gone back to the city.

Thus, he was trailing her now. Hopefully, she'd find her and make her tell him where Yellowjacket was.

Sawbones' eyes were a little dull. He vageuly wondered where Ghoul and Noose had gone ever since he'd left them. He'd gone back to where he last saw them, but they were gone.

He snorted. First he'd lost Yellowjacket, and now Ghoul and Noose. What was next?

As he walked, he bumped into another Other walking down the streets. His knife lightly nicked the Other's thigh.

"Whoops, sorry," The Other apologized, tipping his hat to Sawbones. The knife-wielding Other paused in surprise as he watched the man limp away, his back straightened up.

Sawbones raised an eyebrow. Never had he seen an Other apologize before, especially for something so minor.

As he continued walking, he noticed something. A few little ones were playing in a nearby park, albeit in a demented way. One was tangling another on the swings, two others were playing hop-scotch, and several others were chasing after a squirrel, catching it, releasing it, and then continuing to chase it.

Sawbones scoffed, and turned to see an Other sitting on the bench, reading a Playboy magazine.

"Oh, my. . ." The Other said, stroking his chin.

Sawbones looked around in disbelief. He'd noticed he'd seen several Others acting strangely these last few days, but he didn't know why.

Grabbing the nearest Other, Sawbones roughly jerked her around to face him.

"What's. . . going. . . on!" He shouted, aggravated.

The woman shrugged. "It's a. . . girl," She rasped. She tapped her forehead. "Brainy."

"Who is she?" Sawbones asked, annoyed. When he found out where she was, he was going to make her pay for driving this city into chaos.

The Other's answer made his blood run cold.

"Yellowjacket."

The three feral zombies next to him stiffled when they heard the name. They looked up at Sawbones, who's face was contorted into disbelief.

After a moment's silence, he rasped, "Where?"

The Other pointed down the end of the street. "Close by."

Shoving the Other out of the way, Sawbones got onto all fours and dashed down the streets at a fast pace, the three Others following him closely.

"Yellowjacket!" He shouted as he rushed in the direction the Other had pointed in him. "I coming for you!"

* * *

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	58. Unhappy Reunion

_Korrasami 88: *sigh*_

 _MrScourch: I think it's both._

 _The Batista: I know. It was a joke._

 _I am a burglar: Looks like you have something in common with Blackjacket._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: The last thing anyone wants to do is panic._

 _Antha1: Yellowjacket didn't join them that time. That's my theory and I'm sticking with it._

 _Js: Yes, I did hear about that movie. Coincidence much?_

* * *

After hockey hadn't turned over well with the Others, Yellowjacket had left and confined herself in her room to have some quiet and be by herself. In these moments of silence, she could let her mind flow, and recollect her thoughts.

And one thought in particular was numbing her mind.

* * *

 _ **(In Yellowjacket's Mind)**_

Brick stood at the console, pouting. His arms were folded across his chest, and his face was more sour than usual. His head wasn't flaming, but it was apparent that a certain vexation was beginning to boil to the surface.

Star was the first to notice. "Hey, what's with you?" She asked when she saw the red emotion's face. The other emotions stared at Brick, waiting for a response.

Brick slowly turned to stare each one of them in the face.

"I think Jill and Bill are keeping something from us."

Star raised an eyebrow. "What?" She asked. "Bill isn't even here. What could Jill be keeping from us. And why would she even do that?"

Brick unfolded his arms. "Don't you get it?" He asked. "Mary told us that the reason she and her friends were so smart was because they could remembered things from their past. They found things that let their minds heal."

"So?" Pixie asked. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"And just now," Brick noted. "Their former pals. They said after they were bitten, they remembered each other and why they were here. That made them get smart. And remember Margaret. She didn't go feral since her mother was there when she woke up."

"What are you getting at?" Nerve questioned, squinting his eyes.

Brick grabbed Nerve by the collar and yanked him close. "If Jill and Bill are really from our past," He pointed out. "Then they could've helped us remember who we were before we went feral and did all of that. . . nasty stuff."

The other emotions went silent for a moment. Eventually, Teardrop said, "I'm sure they must've had a good reason for vanishing."

The emotions turned to stare at the blue emotion, who shrugged.

Brick narrowed his eyes. "The next time we see Jill, we're giving her a piece of our mind," He said. "For people who claim they want us to remember who they are, they're not telling us exactly what happened."

Before the emotions could say anything else, they heard the sound of the door opening.

"Rats," Star said. "Everyone, get in place. Someone's coming."

* * *

Yellowjacket turned to the door as Pale Girl walked in. Her blood sister had a deranged grin on her face as she walked into the room, circling Yellowjacket.

"Wow," Yellowjacket said when she noticed Pale Girl's new clothes. "You look. . . different."

"Heeeeeyyyy," Pale Girl growled, waving to Yellowjacket. The blonde-haired zombie blinked a bit; this was the closest Pale Girl had gotten to speaking. She wondered if maybe, Pale Girl was on the road to recovery as well.

"So, what are you doing?" Yellowjacket asked her, hoping to have a normal conversation with her blood sister for once.

Pale Girl shrugged. She shifted her eyes, and then clasped her hands together in a heart-like shape.

"Friends?" Yellowjacket asked, and she gave a nervous smile. Hopefully, she could pull Pale Girl out of her blood-thirst.

Pale Girl nodded, and ushered Yellowjacket to the window. Down on the streets, the two watched the dozens of zombies on the streets. Yellowjacket couldn't help but notice that they looked less. . . dead now.

Pale Girl's face went blank, however, and she turned her head to the west. She frowned, and pulled Yellowjacket from the window.

"What?" Yellowjacket asked, confused.

"Booooosss," Pale Girl hissed out, her eyebrows furrowed. She pulled out a pair of sunglasses from behind her, and put them onto her nose. She then folded her arms behind her back, and walked in a marching movement, in a mocking mimicry of the Boss.

"Booooosss," She repeated. She said this several more times, before Yellowjacket finally, said, "What are you getting at?"

Pale Girl stopped, and removed her sunglasses. Then, she smashed the sunglasses in her hands.

Yellowjacket understood. With a cautious glance, she said, "Look, with all due respect, I think we should put that to the sidelines."

Pale Girl's smile faded and was replaced with an angry glare. She dropped the shattered sunglasses on the ground, and crushed it under her foot. "Nooooow," She hissed at Yellowjacket.

"Pale Girl, we need to focus on more important matters," Yellowjacket pointed out. "Like curing the city. We're succeeding. We could be normal again."

Pale Girl stared at Yellowjacket, scratching her neck. Then, she spat on the floor at Yellowjacket's feet, and quickly started shambling to the door. Yellowjacket could hear her growling something.

"Wait!" She shouted, stretching her hand out. "Come back!"

Pale Girl didn't respond. She just exited the room, slamming the door behind her.

* * *

On the streets, Sawbones and his cronies shuffled through the crowd of zombies. As he passed them, he couldn't help but notice how weird they were all acting. They almost seemed like Freaks to him.

He wondered where Ghoul and Noose were. Hopefully, they were still normal. But they weren't his main concern now. Right now, he wanted to know for sure that Yellowjacket was here, and if she was behind the behavior of the Others.

On the sidewalk near a building, Sawbones saw four college-aged Others. It was Mary, George, Shelly, and Rob.

Approaching them, Sawbones growled, "Yellowjacket? Where?"

He noticed the creeped out expressions on the four's face, but after a moment's hesitation, George turned and pointed up at a window in the building they were standing near. Sawbones stared up at the window, then walked over to the door. His three cronies were about to follow, but Sawbones motioned for them to stay. The three stepped backwards, and then sat down.

Sawbones stared at them, then entered the room. As he did, he noticed Pale Girl storm down the stairs. She glanced at him, and it was clear that she remembered him. However, neither acknowledged the other.

Sawbones watched her exit the room, and then stormed up the stairs.

He was going to find Yellowjacket, and then he was going to find out what was going on once and for all.

* * *

Yellowjacket took a deep breath after her argument with Pale Girl, and stared pacing around the room to collect her thoughts. However, she snapped out of it when she heard heavy footsteps coming in the direction of her room.

For a moment she wondered if Pale Girl was coming back, but the footsteps were not hers. She stopped, and watched as the doorknob twisted, before flying open.

Yellowjacket jumped at the violence of the door being shoved open. She flinched, shutting her eyes, wondering who was at the door. When she opened her eyes, she gasped.

Standing at the door was the unmistakable figure of Sawbones.

Yellowjacket froze, her blood going cold. Her pupils shrunk in pure fear.

Sawbones stared down at Yellowjacket, and slowly stomped into the room, approaching her slowly. Every step he took, Yellowjacket's fear increased.

"S-S-Sawbones," She said, her teeth chattering as the old Other approached her, the knifes clenched tight in his hands. "I-I-I didn't think you'd come."

Sawbones stopped walking just as he was within arms length of Yellowjacket. He stared her down, a gruff expression on his face. He cocked his head to the left, looking down at the girl.

Yellowjacket took a deep breath, and straightened. She reminded herself that this was Sawbones, one of her three companions, just like Ghoul and Noose. But, for some reason, she didn't feel the same emotions when she was with the other two.

Sawbones' eyebrow raised in curiosity as he stared at Yellowjacket.

She looked different, Sawbones noted. Her hair was more golden, and not chalk white. Her skin was no longer clammy and sickly. Her eyes were more life-like, and her claws and fangs were less prominent.

Something had changed in Yellowjacket. She looked less like an Other, and more like a Freak.

Yellowjacket nearly shrank down when Sawbones leaned in, towering over her. He smelled her hair, and Yellowjacket could feel his breath on her face.

Sawbones straightened up, and Yellowjacket was surprised to see a look of shock on his face.

Slowly, Sawbones backed away from her, shaking his head as if in denial. Yellowjacket mustered up the courage to slowly approach him, her arms stretched out.

"Sawbones," She said. "Please, understand-"

She was cut off when Sawbones swung his knife at her, causing her to jump back. She heard the sound of Sawbones growling, and removed her hands from her eyes just in time to see him rush out of the room and down the hallway.

Just as quickly as he had shown up, he was gone.

* * *

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	59. The Swarm

_A/N: Okay, first of all: apologies for deleting Kid's World 2. Sorry, but I lost my interest in the story and it felt like it was holding me back from my other stories. However, now that it's gone, I'm not as stressed out._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Of course she wasn't._

 _I am a burglar: He already left._

 _Candlehead: Um... it passed._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Because they're zombies._

 _MrScourch: Pale Girl just wants to kill the boss. And yeah, I decided to make her speak. As for Sawbones, you're guesses were pretty accurate._

 _Antha1: Well it's not like Yellowjacket knows that the boss was locked up._

 _Creamy Buttercap: No you're not._

 _Miyugi: Thank you._

* * *

George, Mary, Rob and Shelley were standing at the door to the building, wondering who that man was that had suddenly burst inside the building.

Stroking his chin, George said, "Hey, this may sound weird, but I think I remember that guy."

Shelley turned to him. "What do you mean?" She asked, crossing her arms. "We've never met him."

"No, we never met him in person," George explained to the group. "But, I remember. . . I think it was three years ago. . . me, Mary and our parents were watching the news. He was on the TV."

"What, he was a news reporter?" Rob guessed.

"No, he was being arrested for being a. . . bad man," George said, snapping his fingers as he recalled the event. "He was a convict. Is that the name? His name was Ted Something."

"I think his last name was Cowell," Mary piped up as she, too, recalled what had happened. "Yeah, that guy just now did look familiar."

Rob narrowed his eyes, then widened them. "Wait a second!" He shouted out, inadvertently attracting the attention of the Others nearby. "That guy was asking where Yellowjacket was!"

Just as he spoke, the door flew open and Sawbones stomped out of the building, a furious glare in his eyes. He started walking down the streets, his three cronies by his side, and the Others instinctively made room for them to pass, not wanting to provoke the obviously enraged man.

Against his better judgement, George called out, "Hey, get back here! We need a word with you!"

Sawbones stopped, and slowly turned around. George's skin paled even more than it already was when he found himself staring into the man's dead, murderous eyes.

Seeing the look, his three friends backed up. "Hey, who's 'we'?" Shelley asked, trying to keep from pissing herself.

"Y-Yeah, just so you know, that voice doesn't speak for all of us," Rob stuttered, feeling a prickly feeling down his spine. Sawbones' three cronies cackled at the group's plight.

Sawbones growled, and narrowed his eyes. George immediately lost all the will for a confrontation, and merely said, "You can be on your way." Then, he sprinted off in the opposite direction.

Sawbones snorted, and continued walking down the streets. As he did, the door to another apartment opened, and two familiar Others stepped out.

"Hey, is it just me, or did I just hear Sawbones growling?" Ghoul asked Noose as the two stepped out. Just as she spoke, Sawbones stormed past them, barely given them a glance.

Ghoul's eyes widened. "Sawbones!" She cried, trying to get his attention. She quickly started walking after him, Noose following. Sawbones stopped and looked at her, and Ghoul instantly stopped.

Sawbones studied her for a moment. Then, he growled, "Freak," and continued on his way.

"W-What?" Ghoul asked. She continued running after him, grabbing him by the arm and stopping him again.

"Sawbones, what's going on?" She asked, confused at her former companion's behavior.

Sawbones wrenched his arm out of Ghoul's hand and spun around angrily. "Look at you!" He roared hoarsely, suddenly grabbing her by the wrist and shaking her. "You're different!"

Ghoul shook in his grasp, a little scared. As she did, she looked at her bare arms, and she saw that they weren't as pale and ghoulish as they once had been. She also saw that her claws were smaller now.

Her eyes widened in horror as she realized that Sawbones was right. She didn't look like the Other she used to be.

"But. . . where's Yellowjacket?"

Sawbones growled, and suddenly shoved Ghoul backwards, causing her to crash onto the ground at Noose's feet. The businessman-like zombie flinched.

"Hey, don't do that to her!" The words flew out of his mouth before he even knew what he was saying. Sawbones looked up at him, looking a little surprised at Noose's sudden burst of courage. Then, he merely hissed at him and continued on his way.

Ghoul opened her mouth to try and say something to him as he left, but nothing came out. She simply watched as he walked down the empty streets. His three cronies galloped past the two and followed Sawbones. Soon, they disappeared behind a building.

The moment they were gone, Ghoul slammed her fist on the ground and cried, "Why does everyone I love leave me?!"

"I won't leave you," Noose comforted the younger woman. Ghoul looked up at him, and managed a weak smile.

"Thanks," She said, genuinely grateful.

* * *

Jill had just gotten out of the shower in another section of the building. As she passed by a nearby mirror, she stopped, and looked at herself.

"Crap," She whispered when she realized that, by showering, she'd washed off her makeup that made her look like an Other. Hopefully, there were no Others nearby that could see her.

Now, that she actually got a good look at herself, she turned around to stare at her backside. Putting a hand on her hips, she noted, "Wow, I've gained weight down there." Shaking off the feeling, she called out, "Bob! Sir! Are any of you around?"

When she got no answer, she wrapped herself in a towel, exited the room, and started walking down the hallway, praying that none of the Other saw her. Hopefully, she could get back to her room and re-apply her makeup without anyone noticing.

As she did, she heard a growling sound coming from down the hallway. Swearing under her breath, she started walking at a quicker pace, not bothering to waste time by sneaking a look at the Other behind her.

The growling got louder, and Jill knew that the Other was following her. Her room was almost in sight. Hopefully, she could get in there, lock the door, and put on her make-up with the Other being none the wiser. It hadn't gotten a good look at her yet, so it probably didn't know she was a Freak.

Grabbing the doorknob, she found, to her horror, that it was locked. She started banging on the door, shouting, "Let me in!"

From within the door, she heard Blackjacket call out, "Who is it?"

Hearing the growling get louder, Jill said, nearly shouting, "It's Jill! I need to get in!"

"Oh, okay!" Blackjacket said, and she heard him heading towards the door. With her peripheral vision, she could see the shadow of the Other approaching her.

No longer able to bare it, Jill finally turned around to stare at the Other harassing her. As she got a look at his face, her eyes widened in horror, and she had to keep from shouting out in shock.

She recognized that zombie. The long, mangy hair. The tattered clothing. The arched back. The hungry eyes.

She remembered that zombie all too well. This was the zombie that had broken into her house nearly a year ago.

This was the zombie that had taken her daughter away from her.

* * *

Sawbones and his three cronies charged back to the asylum that was their former home, a murderous look in their eyes.

Sawbones himself was the most enraged. How was it that when he let Yellowjacket out of his grasp, she would not only turn into a Freak, but start to transform the rest of the city as well? Even Ghoul and Noose.

He couldn't believe how oblivious they were. How could they not notice the drastic change that they were going through. And how could it happen so fast, with him not there to stop it?

Well, he would soon put a stop to it. He'd find a way to cure this dreaded city.

Climbing over the gates, Sawbones and his cronies barged into the building. The entrapped inmates immediately started howling in excitement once they recognized Sawbones' entrance.

Sawbones looked around at all of them. These were real Others.

"Release them all!" He commanded to his three cronies. "Everyone last one of them! I want them all out of here!"

The cronies growled in agreement, and rushed out. They opened doors, smashed open cages, letting out all of the feral Others.

"This city has been infected!" Sawbones shouted out, his voice booming. "Yellowjacket has contaminated this city, and turned everyone into Freaks! Go, and cure this city and all its filth!"

Even above the shouting of the feral Others, they all heard Sawbones; and if someone didn't, it was repeated to them. Quickly, the swarm of feral Others dashed past Sawbones and out of the dreaded building, joyful to finally be free from the wretched place.

They swarmed over the walls and out towards the city, as if one entity.

At the back, Sawbones watched them go out to the city.

Then, he let out a deranged cackle.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	60. Staring into the Abyss

_Al Drin Hoshizora: Because he's mad at how freaky she is._

 _I am a burglar: Yeah, the chances of Jill returning to the bathroom are next to nil, considering what's happening now._

 _The Batista: Well, more like 'This is it, zombies. The DEADER zombies are coming.'_

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Yeah, you do that and get eaten by that zombie dude._

 _MrScourch: He's singling her out because she's the cause of all of this, as well as them being former teammates. And for the record, he has the "booster shot" solution in mind (though his cronies may got the extra mile)._

 _Guest (Js): He was arrested because he was a dangerous criminal. That's really all there is to it._

 _Creamy Buttercap: That is not a pretty alliance._

 _Antha1: Well, maybe, but Sawbones isn't really thinking that of himself._

* * *

"Mom, we need to have a very important talk with each other about my past."

Yellowjacket stared at her reflection in the mirror, trying to look as straightforward and serious as possible. She was working herself up to finally confronting her mother about what had really happened that fateful night when she was converted into an Other. However, she was still somewhat insecure about herself.

"Mom, I need to know why you and Bill weren't there when I woke up," She said to the mirror. "If you had been there, I could've gotten my memories back sooner, before I hurt all those people."

As she said this, she couldn't help but wonder if her parents could've had some motive for abandoning her. She took a deep breath. She knew she wouldn't get the answer until she asked Jill.

"Okay, Yellowjacket, you can do this," She encouraged herself. "You are going to go up to Jill, and you are going to tell her-"

However, she was torn out of her thoughts by a piercing scream. her eyes widened in horror when she realized that it was none other than Jill herself.

". . . Mom?" She whispered in horror. Her skin paled as she wondered why she was screaming. _Had one of the Others seen through her disguise?_

Instantly, Yellowjacket tore off as fast as she could run in the direction of Jill's screaming. The thought of confronting Jill totally left her mind. Now, the only thing she was thinking was that she had to protect her mother, and fast.

* * *

Bob and Sir were strolling down the sidewalk, simply chatting with each other.

"So, I was thinking," Bob said, whistling a jaunty tune. "Maybe being a zombie isn't so bad after all. I mean, you don't have to go to work, you don't have to pay taxes, it's almost like a permanent day off."

"Oh joy," Sir said sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "Now, the only thing we have to deal with is Freaks shooting at us 24/7."

"Hey, it may sound bad, but I'm sure we'll get used to it," Bob reassured his older comrade. "I mean, remember that one zombie video game? Maybe, it'll happen here, and we can become "special" infected zombies. Maybe I can be that zombie that shoots bile out of his mouth-"

"Or the one that can pounce from building to building-"

"-Or the one that can shoot acid-"

The two were cut off from their chat when they heard a series of loud howling and hissing coming from a dark part of the street. The two paused, staring at the empty street, waiting to see what was going to come out.

Slowly, corpse-like, contorted, malformed figures crawling out from behind a building and began to litter themselves on the street. Bob and Sir recognized that they were Others; however, they looked different.

They were more monstrous. More grotesque.

These ones looked _deader._

First, only around a few dozen were on the streets. Then, in mere moments, it was close to a hundred. And judging by the rate that they were arriving, it was much more than that, too.

"Uh, hey?" Bob said, shrugging. They were both Others, after all. What was there to fear?

The Others on the street immediately began growling and hissing at them, startling the two healing Others. Bob and Sir slowly backed away as the swarm began to advance towards the two.

"Run," Both of them said, and quickly, they dashed down the streets in the opposite direction, screaming their heads off. The swarm bolted after them, almost like one entity. These Others weren't just after Freaks.

They were after the Others, too.

* * *

"Get away from me!" Jill shouted out as the deranged Other reached out his mangy arms to try and pin her against the wall. Jill struggled in the man's grasp, but she wasn't in any position to try and fight back.

The man opened his jaw and breathed heavily, and Jill could feel bile rising in her throat from the horrid stench. The deranged feral man licked his lips and growled. It was evident that he clearly hadn't been among the zombies who had been educated by Yellowjacket, because he looked more savage than the last time Jill had seen it.

Jill brought her knee up and kneed the man in the stomach. The zombie doubled over in pain, groaning. As he did, the door behind her opened, and Jill fell through the door and onto her back.

"Hey, what's going on?" Blackjacket asked, starting down at Jill.

"Close the door!" Jill immediately shouted to him. Blackjacket jumped, and turned to see the zombie lunge towards the door. Panicking, he immediately shut the door in the zombie's face, and locked the door.

Despite the door being locked, the zombie continued to pound ferociously against the door, determined to get in. Blackjacket pressed his weight against the door to keep the zombie from getting in, but one slam against the door knocked the young zombie boy onto his back.

Jill, who had quickly put her clothes on, immediately grabbed a chair and shoved it up against the door to block it. She pulled a stool, a dresser, and several mirrors against the door in a desperate attempt to barricade it. However, the zombie's fist punched through the door, knocking her back.

"Is there a gun? Get the gun!" Jill shouted at Blackjacket, panicking. The young zombie raced to Jill's bag and began to surf through it in a desperate attempt to find her firearm before the zombie broke in.

Jill stared at the door, watching as it was quickly smashed through by the zombie. Her skin paled as the feral man crawled over the barricades and found his way into the room. Blackjacket saw him coming, and instantly froze.

The feral man lunged for Jill, but Blackjacket dove at him, slamming into the man's stomach. However, he could barely even slow the larger zombie down, and the feral man grabbed Blackjacket's face in one hand and shoved him backwards. The young zombie slammed against the wall, leaving a dent, and collapsed onto the ground, dazed.

The zombie stared at Blackjacket's unconscious form, but quickly snapped back to attention when he heard Jill shout out. Whipping his head to the side, he saw Jill rush at him, holding a chair leg in her hand. However, the zombie was ready for her. As she brought her arms down, he reached out and grabbed her wrists, stopping the chair leg from striking him.

Jill struggled in the zombie's grip, kicking out with her legs, striking him in the stomach repeatedly. Drool dripped out of the zombie's mouth, and he gurgled in pain before throwing Jill backwards, tossing her onto the floor. The chair leg clattered onto the ground next to her.

Jill desperately reached for the chair leg, but the zombie stepped over her, kicking the chair leg out of her grasp. With her only weapon out of reach, Jill could only look up as the zombie grabbed her by the throat, throttling her. He lifted her up by his arm, and opened his drooling mouth, growling.

Jill closed her mouth, and let out a scream.

"Mom!"

Jill felt the zombie let out a howl of pain, and instantly dropped her. She collapsed onto the ground, and looked up to see none other than Yellowjacket, currently on the zombie's back, scratching and pulling his hair. The zombie yelped out in pain and confusion as he ran around the room and thrashed violently in an attempt to get Yellowjacket off of him.

The young zombie grabbed at the zombie's face and dug her nails into his cheeks. The zombie howled out, and with a sudden burst of strength, he threw Yellowjacket off of him. The small zombie flew through the air and landed on her rump.

The zombie turned to Yellowjacket, growling at her. However, Jill took the opportunity to get up and rush at the zombie, punching him in the face hard. She delivered a few more punches to the zombie's face, stunning him for a moment before he recovered and swatted her away, throwing her onto the bed. The zombie then turned his attention back to Yellowjacket, who pressed herself against the wall in terror as the zombie approached her.

"Riley!" Jill shouted from behind the other zombie.

Yellowjacket whimpered in fear as the zombie approached her, licking his decayed lips. However, out of the corner of her eye, she saw a cracked mirror, shattered when the zombie had broken into the room.

Just as the zombie lunged at her, Yellowjacket rolled out of the way and towards the mirror. Grabbing a large mirror shard, Yellowjacket got up and let out a cry as she lunged at the zombie, the mirror shard in the hand.

She plunged the shard into the zombie's side.

The zombie let out a choked gasp, feeling as if the wind had been knocked out of him. Yellowjacket stood still, the shard wedged deep into the zombie's side, blood dripping out of the wound. Slowly, she pulled the shard out of the zombie.

Yellowjacket shook fearfully as the zombie slowly turned to face her, a look of shock in his face.

Then, Yellowjacket saw it. Her eyes widened in shock as realization crept in.

She knew that zombie.

* * *

 _ **(In Yellowjacket's Mind)**_

The emotions had been watching as Yellowjacket had wounded the zombie with the knife. However, Star was the first one to notice one of the memories, purple and blue in color, was glowing brightly.

"Guys!" She shouted, alerting them to the multi-colored memory. They saw that it was glowing brighter than any memory previously had. It soon occurred to them that this zombie must had jogged her memories substantially.

Star couldn't resist. Even with the zombie still alive and still a threat, she knew she had to get to the memory to unlock this key moment in Yellowjacket's past.

The five emotions rushed to the memory, but Star was the first one to grab it. She held it out for all five emotions to see as it glowed brightly, as if asking for the memory to be unlocked.

The light was so bright that the emotions had to shield themselves from its blazing light. But Star forced herself to look at it. The memory glowed so brightly that it almost looked like it was increasing in size.

Then, the light engulfed the emotions in a blazing illumination, and they were dragged into the memory, bound to gain witness to Yellowjacket's life-changing past event.

* * *

 _As you could tell, the next chapter is going to be what is called a **Turning Point.** So, stay tuned._

 _Oh, and read and review._


	61. Rappelles Toi

_Guest: It just happened to be there._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Bob wasn't exactly shown to be bright._

 _I am a burglar: If you insist._

 _MrScourch: I think you made a a few typos in that comment._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Good luck indeed._

 _Antha1: That's kind of the joke. Also, I don't get that last comment._

* * *

Star opened her eyes, her head feeling numb. Groaning and pulling herself onto her knees, she looked around. Her eyes were fuzzy, but she could just barely make out Brick and Pixie in her line of vision, and she was sure Teardrop and Nerve were nearby.

Brick got up, rubbing his head. "What the heck was that?" He asked as he got to his feet. "Why did unlocking that memory knock us out?"

Behind Star, Teardrop got up. "I think we may have unlocked a very powerful memory," She explained to the others. "I don't think Yellowjacket's mind was prepared for it."

Star stared at the blue emotion, her eyes widened. If what she was saying was true, then they could very well have just found the key to unlocking Yellowjacket's past.

Dusting herself off, Pixie asked, "Where are we anyways?"

It was then that Star realized that they weren't in the Headquarters anymore; or at least, it didn't look like it. Instead, they were in a very human-looking neighborhood. It took a few moments before the emotions realized that this was Yellowjacket's neighborhood.

"So the memory takes place here," Brick noted. "I wonder what's going on-"

"Duck and cover!" Nerve suddenly shouted, startling the other emotions. The purple emotion dove to the ground as a hail of bullets sprayed in the emotions direction. The emotions shouted out in surprise as they saw men in black, firing guns through the neighborhood. The emotions immediately flattened themselves on the ground to avoid the bullets, but Teardrop wasn't quick enough.

"Teardrop, look out!" Star shouted as a few bullets rained in her direction. The bullets ripped through the blue emotion, and the other emotions screamed out in horror.

Teardrop clenched her eyes shut, fearing that she was going to fade to black at any moment. However, a few seconds later, she opened her eyes when she realized that she hadn't felt anything. The bullets had phased right through her.

It was then that Star remembered. "Guys, this is a memory," She pointed out. "We're not really here!"

As she spoke the words, she heard growling coming from behind her, and the emotions spun around to see several feral-looking people shambling out of the dark woods and towards the men in black. The men shot at them as the Others dashed towards them hungrily.

The emotions watched on, unsure of what to do, as the men in black and the Others engaged in a fierce battle. Some men were overwhelmed by hordes of Others and mauled. Others were getting torn apart by bullets. Terrified bystanders scattered in a panic in the chaos-stricken neighborhood.

Star saw one particularly crazy man throw a Molotov cocktail through the window of a house, which quickly got fire. Her eyes widened as she realized that the house was right next to Yellowjacket's house.

"Guys, that's our house!" She shouted, pointing to the house right next to the burning one. Quickly, the emotions dashed towards it, ignoring the fight raging around them. As they ran to the house, they noticed several ferals breaking into their house.

Star recognized one feral man in particular crawling through the window. The emotions ran to the window and watched as they saw Bill, Jill, and an pre-infected Yellowjacket run down the stairs in a panic, trying desperately to fight off the hordes of Others attacking them. They didn't notice the wild-looking man shambling through the living room.

"Come on, guys, run!" Star begged the three as they fought through the Others. Bill made it to the door, and grabbed onto it, twisting it and practically tearing the door open.

"Run!" Star shouted, terror ripping through her. She had seen this moment in Yellowjacket's dreams, and she could tell what would happen next. She wished she could do something about it, try to stop it from happening, but she was practically invisible. She was helpless to stop what would happen next.

Then, it happened. She saw the wild-looking feral man lung towards the three as they stood at the door, distracted by the firefight going on outside. The three heard the man let out a howl as it shambled towards them.

Star could only watch on in horror.

 _"No!"_

The men rushed towards Riley, and sank its teeth into her shoulder. The young girl let out an ear-piercing scream, agony tearing through her. Jill struck the man away from her daughter, and he stumbled into a table. He crashed onto the ground, unconscious.

Bill and Jill ran, half-carrying an injured Riley with them, blood streaming from her bite wound. The emotions watched them run into the woods, and quickly ran after them.

"Bill!" Star shouted. "Jill!" She realized that they couldn't hear her.

She could only watch in horror as another feral man jumped out from the woods, and Bill, Jill, and Yellowjacket were shoved down a hill. The emotions raced down the hill after them, careful not to stumble and fall themselves.

They finally reached the bottom of the hill, just as Bill and Jill had gotten to their feet. Riley, however, was still on her knees, blood still dripping down her shoulder.

"Riley?" Jill whispered, holding out a hand to briefly touch her daughter. However, she pulled her hand away as Riley let out a small growl. Her skin was beginning to pale.

"Oh, no. . ." Star whispered as she watched on. This was it. This was when Riley became Yellowjacket.

It appeared that her parents were thinking the same thing, as they got up and backed away from their daughter as she began to turn. Riley finally looked up at them, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Help me, mom," She choked out, her eyes watery. "Mom, dad, please."

Bill stared at his daughter. He could feel the gun in his hands. It felt heavier than usual, as he soon realized just what was happening. With shaking arms, he raised the gun up to stare at it.

He'd shot zombies before. But this was his daughter. He couldn't-

Jill saw the conflicted look on his face. "Bill, no," She whispered as she realized what he was thinking. "Bill, this is our daughter. We can't-"

Bill breathed heavily. "She's. . . she's _changing_ ," He whispered, choking the words out. The gun rattled in his hands, and he clenched it in his fists.

Riley stared up at the two, looking at Jill, then at Bill. She didn't know what was happening.

"Dad?" She whispered, confused. She could see an object in her father's hand, but she didn't know what it was. She felt like she'd known not so long ago, but her memory was drifting...

Confused, she shambled closer to them, and was startled when Bill and Jill moved away from her. Bill suddenly pointed the gun in her direction, and she immediately froze. She stared up at Bill, unmoving, her eyes locked on him.

Sweat was dripping down Bill's head as he wrestled with his decision. If he didn't do this, her daughter would become one of them. She'd become a walking corpse. But if he did do it, he'd have killed one of the most precious things in his life.

No matter what choice he made, his daughter would die.

"Bill, please," Jill begged him. "Don't do this."

Bill stared at his wife, then at his daughter. He shut his eyes, and let a tear drip down his face.

Then, he lowered his gun. Jill let out a breath of relief. She didn't see it, but the emotions did the exact same thing.

"We have to go," Bill told his wife. "Now!"

"Mom?" Riley asked, and reached out to her.

"Now!" Bill repeated, with more force, and he grabbed his wife's arm. The two both spared one last look at their daughter. Then, they ran.

"Mom, dad!" Riley shouted out to them as they ran into the woods, their figures becoming smaller and smaller. She briefly tried to get to her feet, but she was too weak. As she did, she saw that her hands were growing claws.

As her parents vanished into the woods, she realized that she was all alone. She didn't see the emotions, surrounding her from all sides, staring down at her in pity.

"Riley. . ." Star whispered, tears brimming in her eyes.

As they watched on, the memory began to fade away. Riley slowly vanished, and the emotions were back in the Headquarters.

The memory stopped glowing.

* * *

Yellowjacket snapped awake. She began breathing heavily as she looked around. She was back in the room. For a moment, she wondered if she was back home, and everything that had happened had merely been a dream.

However, she soon realized that all of this was a reality.

Looking around, she saw Jill, staring at her in shock. Blackjacket was on the ground, half-conscious and rubbing his sore head. As she stared at him, she realized that she remembered who he was.

Jordan. One of her friends. And her mother was her. . . _mom_.

Jill was her mother. Bill was her dad. Margaret was her childhood friend.

She remembered now. She turned around and stared at the broken mirror, and she stared at her reflection in the mirror, and for a second, she thought that she would look normal.

Her face fell, however, when she realized she still looked like a zombie. She was so very close to being human, but even with so many of her memories back, she wasn't there yet.

She could feel blood on her hands, and she looked down to see she was still holding the glass shard, stained with blood.

Looking down at her feet, she saw the feral man, the one who had been responsible for infecting her and taking her away from her parents. He was lying on his back, unmoving. His mouth hung open, blood streaming down his mouth. She could see a series of bloody stab wounds in his stomach and chest areas.

Blackjacket got up, and limped towards her. Staring down at the man, he whispered, "You. . . you killed him."

Yellowjacket's eyes widened as she realized that, when she had blacked out, she must have stabbed the man over and over and over again until he was dead. As realization set in, she dropped the shard, her hands shaking.

Even though this one zombie had been responsible for so much of her pain, she hadn't wanted to kill him.

"Riley. . ." Jill whispered, and briefly set a hand on her shoulder. However, Yellowjacket tore out of her grasp, causing Jill to jump, startled.

Yellowjacket stared at her mother, breathing heavily. Jill could see in her eyes so many different emotions.

Fear. Sadness. Shock. _Anger._

Before she could comprehend what was happening, Yellowjacket tore out of the room, Blackjacket following her.

"Riley, wait!" Jill shouted, and she ran after her.

* * *

On the streets, it was pure chaos. The feral zombies had caught the Others completely by surprise, throwing themselves at their less savage counterparts mercilessly. Some Others were grabbed by groups of feral zombies and buried under them. Many Others were covered in bites and scratches.

Many of the Others fought back. They may not have been as feral as they used to be, but they could still fight. They clawed and bit, scratched and tore at limbs. Some feral zombies were ripped apart, others fleeing.

Pale Girl was chased by two feral zombies. She ran towards the building, jumped at it, and used it to catapult herself at her two attackers. Landing on one zombie, she bit into his throat. The feral immediately collapsed onto the ground. Pale Girl then whipped around and slashed the second feral in the chest. He quickly fled, blood streaming down his chest.

Shelley hid under a car, covering her ears. Mary and George were currently beating back a group of larger feral zombies as they lunged at them. Grabbing a small garbage can, George bashed one feral zombie in the head, causing him to stumble and fall onto the ground.

Rob, meanwhile, swatted at two ferals as they lunged at him, sending them flying off into a nearby building. A determined look in his face, he barreled through feral zombies that came at him. He saw that the vast majority of them were coming from one street in particular.

Turning to a member of Bill and Jill's former group, he said, "You got it."

The man quickly nodded, ran off, and returned with a Molotov cocktail. Rob grabbed it in his hand, and stared at the swarm of ferals coming down the street towards the Others.

He narrowed his eyes, furrowed his eyebrows, and whispered one word.

 _"Zuul."_

Then, he threw the cocktail over the Others head. It landed on the ground in front of the swarm of feral zombies, and exploded into a fiery blast. Several ferals were knocked away by the blast, others caught in the fire.

The fire spread out, creating a wall that separated the Others from the feral zombies. The Others ran away to avoid the blazing heat. On the other side, a few feral zombies foolishly ran through the wall of fire to attack the Others, and were promptly set aflame. They collapsed, dead, before they made if far.

Realizing that they were completely separated from the Others, the feral zombies hissed out threats at them. Then, the Others watched as they turned around and ran off in the opposite direction. Soon, they were gone.

Mary, George and Rob ran off to check on any injured Others. Several had been bitten and scratched, but otherwise, they didn't appear to show any other signs of injury.

Shelley got out from under the car. "What were those things?" She asked, rubbing her head. "They were so savage."

"They were just like those three Others that attacked us in the forest," George noted, remembering the violent encounter that had transpired when they left the cabin days before.

Pale Girl stared at Shelley and George, and turned back to the wall of fire. The feral zombies she had seen had acted a lot like how she had acted. She narrowed her eyes as her mind configured an answer.

"The Booosss!" She screeched out, causing all heads to turn to her. "Booosss!"

"Who?" George asked, unfamiliar with who the Boss was.

"He made them!" Pale Girl shouted out, a little surprised that she was speaking so loudly. However, she hadn't truly spoken in a long time, and she wanted that to come to an end.

"Who is the Boss?" George asked, scratching his head. "I don't get it!"

"He-" Pale Girl started, and gestured to the crowd. "Did this. Him and his. . ." She paused, not knowing the name of his father. She just let out an angry shriek and started shaking her head wildly.

The door to a building opened, and Yellowjacket and Blackjacket rushed out. They saw the carnage before them, and Yellowjacket shouted, "What happened?"

"Ferals," One Other said. Pointing to Pale Girl, who was currently ranting, the Other said, "She says 'the Boss' made them."

"Ferals?" Yellowjacket asked, raising an eyebrow. Hadn't she been doing her best to try and cure the city. Even if there were a few feral Others, they would be much too rare.

"The Booosss did this!" Pale Girl shouted out. She didn't know the truth; she earnestly believed in what she was saying.

Yellowjacket closed her eyes. The only feral zombies she could conceive of that could cause such an amount of damage were the ones Sawbones was-

She stopped herself, shoving the thought out of her head. Those zombies were locked away, she knew that. There was no way all of them could get out at once.

She was snapped out of her thoughts when she heard Pale Girl shout, "We must attack the Booosss!" She turned to Yelliwjacket, and pointed at her.

"You! Lead!" She demanded to her blood sister.

Yellowjacket's eyes widened. "But I don't want-"

"Lead!" Pale Girl demanded to her. "Must attack the Freaks now!"

At the sound of the word 'freaks', the Others were stirred into a frenzy. Turning to Yellowjacket, they all shouted, "Lead! Lead! Lead!"

Yellowjacket shrank down as all eyes turned to her. She turned around, and saw George, Mary, Rob and Shelley staring at her, confused. She figured, in her mind, that she had to do what the Others wanted.

"Okay!" She shouted, and the crowd quieted down. "We'll. . . go to the Boss' headquarters."

"Yeeeaaahhh," Pale Girl said, grinning. She clenched her claws together, and rushed to Yellowjacket. Grabbing Yellowjacket's hands, she pulled her out to the front of the crowd.

"Go!" She shouted. "Attack the Freaks!"

Her legs wobbly, Yellowjacket walked down the street, the crowd of Others racing after her, chanting, "Attack! Attack! Attack!"

Blackjacket picked out the four college-aged Others in the crowd, and ran to them. Confused, they followed the rest of the crowd as the poured down the street, led by Yellowjacket and Pale Girl to the Freaks' hideout.

As they took off down the streets, Jill burst out through the door, shouting, "Riley! Riley?!"

She was shoved and pushed through the crowd of Others, and one of them knocked her onto her back. She rolled out of the way as the crowd ran down through the street, until they were all gone.

Once they were all gone, Jill got up. "Riley!" She shouted out, but she was nowhere to be seen.

"George! Mary!" She shouted out, hoping that there was someone she knew that could help her. But everyone was gone.

As Jill collapsed onto the ground in frustration, she heard the sound of the door opening. Snapping her head up to see who it is, she let out a groan when she saw who it was.

Standing at the door, were Ghoul and Noose.

"Hey, what were Sawbones' lackeys doing here?" Ghoul asked her older companion. "Are't they supposed to be locked up! And where was everyone going?"

"I thought I saw Yellowjacket down there!" Noose pointed out in disbelief.

Noticing Jill, Noose shouted, "Hey you! We're looking for Yellowjacket! Want to help us find her?!"

Jill stared at the two, feeling as if Fate itself was playing a cruel game on her.

"Oh, %#*&!" She shouted out in anger.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	62. Mothers and Daughters

_Korrasami 88: The Zuul boys were never gone._

 _MrScourch: He was never in jail. He just stumbled upon Jill. As for Sawbones, he's not as "feral" as his minions, but he certainly doesn't enjoy 'Freakish' things like reading and playing games._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Get used to it. This won't be the last 'long' chapter (especially since we're nearly at the climax)._

 _I am a burglar: It's not a crime if he's a zombie :)_

 _The Batista: What do you mean? She's technically leading them._

 _Creamy Buttercap: That's kind of dark._

 _Antha1: They changed their mind because their parental instincts kicked in._

* * *

"Look Joe, I'm telling you that those Others are changing."

Bill had been telling this to Joe for at least two days now. After the 'Boss' had explained the cause of the whole infection, Bill had now been trying to instill hope in the current Boss, which was Joe.

And the biggest step was convincing him that there was nothing to fear.

"You saw it with my daughter, and even the Boss," Bill explained to Joe in his office. "They're capable of non-violence. They can communicate and reason, but you have to give them a chance-"

"I have a duty as leader here, Bill," Joe cut him off with a wave of his hand. "I have to protect what's left of this city, especially now that the former Boss is one of them."

"What do you mean, 'them'?" Bill asked, folding his arms. "I was out there with 'them' for over a year. I know them better than you do. My daughter, her friend, Margaret. . . there are smart Others here in this building, Joe. They're not zombies. They're people who need help."

"But what about the ones who aren't changing?" Joe pointed out. "Are you asking me to believe that all of those things are suddenly friendly? Don't you remember Patient Zero? That thing ran off with your daughter. She killed and injured a lot of people. Are you asking me to believe that she's friendly?"

"But-"

"She ran off with your daughter, Bill," Joe reminded. "Who knows what has become of them. For all we know, she tore your daughter to pieces."

Bill furrowed his eyebrows at the thought. For a moment, he considered it; then, he shoved the thought out of his head. He refused to except that anything had happened to his daughter.

Suddenly, the door behind the two swung open, and Bill spun around to see some man that he didn't know burst in. He looked out of breath and frantic.

"What is it?" Joe asked, noticing the man's terrified expression.

"It's the zombies," The man said, breathing to catch his breath. "They're heading to the building."

Bill saw Joe's expression change into horror. The man quickly asked, "How many?"

The man's answer made Bill and Joe's heart sink.

"All of them."

* * *

The streets were swarming with hundreds of thousands of Others. As if with one singular mind, the massive crowd swarmed in the direction of the Freak's building, led by Yellowjacket and Pale Girl.

The crowd had encountered several Freaks and more intelligent Others during the journey, but they had fled the moment they saw the massive number of Others coming in their direction. The Others were sure they were going off to warn the Boss, but it didn't matter.

There was no way the Freaks could beat back a mob of this size.

Yellowjacket gulped as she hesitantly navigated the crowd towards the building. By her side, Pale Girl strode confidently, a large grin on her face. Her clawed hands were clenched.

"Yellowjacket!" The girl heard Blackjacket's (or as she now knew him to be, Jordan) voice in the crowd, and she turned around to see the young boy squeeze his way through the older Others.

"So, uh, what's going to happen?" He asked Yellowjacket as the crowd marched on.

"We fight!" Pale Girl suddenly butted it, and flashed Blackjacket a fanged grin. Blackjacket shrunk down a bit, and his skin paled even more than usual.

Yellowjacket groaned. She picked out a few familiar faces in the crowd, and she called them out to her side. George, Mary, Rob and Shelley, and few members of Jill and Bill's former group were soon next to her.

"Yeah, Yellowjacket?" George asked.

"I want you to put yourselves as far away from the front-lines as possible," Yellowjacket instructed them. "You're less likely to get shot, then."

"Oh," Blackjacket said, frowning at the thought of abandoning his friend.

"Oh, thank goodness!" Bob said, and he and the other members of Bill and Jill's former group instantly took off to try and find places in the mob farthest away from the front-lines of the fight.

Yellowjacket rolled her eyes, then turned to the other five and said, "You guys as well."

"Yellowjacket," Blackjacket started.

"Now," Yellowjacket said, more forceful. Blackjacket sighed, and he and the other four shoved their way backwards into the crowd.

Once they were gone, Yellowjacket turned to Pale Girl and said, "Look, I don't think those creatures back there were created by the Boss. See, there's a guy named Sawbones, and he lives in this, eh, building surrounded by these really creepy things. . ."

"Don't care," Pale Girl said, brushing Yellowjacket off. "We'll deal with them after we get to the Boss."

Yellowjacket narrowed her eyes. "What did he even do to you?" She asked her blood sister.

Pale Girl's smile vanished, and she simply turned to stare at Yellowjacket. She then turned back to the front, and recognized that they were entering the Freak's territory.

"Stop!" She shouted, and the crowd behind her slowly came to a stop. The ones that didn't hear her stopped as well when the Others in front ceased walking.

The large crowd all looked around as they recognized that this area of the city looked different. There was less wreckage, and there were tons of writings and graffiti on the walls.

"The Boss is near!" Pale Girl declared, and she was about to rush forward when Yellowjacket grabbed her by the hand.

"No," She said to her, loud enough so that the Others heard her as well. "We need a plan."

Pale Girl turned to glare at Yellowjacket, and shook off her hand. Yellowjacket turned to the crowd, and declared, "First things first, before we rush in there: no biting!"

The crowd stared at Yellowjacket in confusion, but the girl continued.

"Second of all, if we're going to take down the Boss, we're going to need a special something called strategy," She explained to the crowd. The Others looked miffed, but they mostly remained silent.

When she was sure they were listening, Yellowjacket said, "Okay, here's what we're going to do. . ."

* * *

 _ **(In Yellowjacket's Mind)**_

The five emotions stood at the console, driving Yellowjacket's actions. As they did, Star explained to the group, "Okay, so we have to get in there and take out the Boss first. Hopefully, that happens without anyone getting bitten."

Teardrop nudged Star, and pointed out, "But Star, what about Jill."

Teardrop was somewhat startled to see a forlorn look on Star's face. "We have more _important_ matters to deal with at the moment," The golden emotion said, looking away from Teardrop.

"Star, what do you mean?" Teardrop asked her.

Brick turned to Teardrop. "You know what she means," The red emotion said. "Jill's not important now."

"What?" Teardrop asked, shocked.

"They abandoned us!" This time Nerve was the one to speak. "They just left us in the forest to die. They were willing to do that to their own daughter."

"At least Ghoul and Noose took us in," Pixie pointed out.

"But they found us," Teardrop reminded the group. "They tried to help us remember."

"Yeah, but they weren't willing to tell us the whole story, now were they?" Brick said. "They didn't want us to know how they were considering just killing us right then and there. Or how they just abandoned us, alone and with nowhere to go."

"At least Meg's mom stayed with her throughout," Star mumbled. "She didn't let her turn into a vicious _zombie_. If Jill and Bill had only done that, we wouldn't have hurt all those people. Maybe, we could've cured ourselves sooner, and we wouldn't be stuck leading a war!"

Star stopped when she saw how much she had offended Teardrop. Softly, she said, "Look, I'm sorry. But right now, we have a city to deal with. Our mom, or memories. . . they're not vital now."

Teardrop turned away from the other emotions, and she now stared ahead, at the console. She felt her eyes begin to water, and she let a tear stream down her face.

Outside of the Headquarters, Yellowjacket did the same thing.

* * *

Jill couldn't believe her bad luck.

Not only had she just lost her daughter (again), but she had been separated from her husband, her group, and the entire city. And now, she was partnered up with the last two people she'd ever wanted to associate with to find her daughter.

She was right. Fate really was playing a cruel game on her.

The female Other, Ghoul, said, "I can't believe the whole city just took off and we weren't there."

Noose shrugged. "I can't believe our Yellowjacket was under our noses the whole time, and we didn't know."

"Now, we just have to find her," Ghoul said, optimistically. Turning to Jill, she said, "Can you believe it? We might actually be able to reunite with Yellowjacket."

Jill narrowed her eyes. "Hooray," She said, sarcasm blatant.

Ghoul didn't notice Jill's obvious contempt, and she said, "So, where do we go?"

"Trust me, it's not hard following a crowd," Noose reassured the two women. "The real challenge will be locating Yellowjacket in that crowd. I mean, do you know how hard it is to find a 13 year old in a crowd?"

"Can we stay positive, here?" Ghoul pleaded to Noose.

Jill felt the need to add in her own comment. "So, why are you two even looking for this Yellowjacket," She asked, pretending not to know who she was.

"Oh, she's really important to me," Ghoul explained to Jill. "With her, I'm not just a creature that munches on Freaks. You see, all my life, I felt like something was missing in my life. She might be that thing I'm missing. She's almost like a. . ."

"Daughter?" Jill guessed, and she knew she was correct when she saw the look on Ghoul's face.

"Yeah," Ghoul said, and she frowned. "I hope nothing happens to her."

Jill scoffed, and she felt compelled to ask, "How did you even meet my daugh. . . Yellowjacket, anyways?"

"Your daughter?" Ghoul asked, and Jill nearly cursed. The three immediately stopped walking, and Ghoul and Noose turned to stare at Jill.

An awkward silence ensued, and Jill said, "How did you meet Yellowjacket?"

Ghoul turned to look up at the stars, and she let out a sigh.

"I don't remember a lot. But that's the thing I remember the most. . ."

* * *

 ** _One year ago_**

* * *

Ghoul and Noose walked through a damp, dark forest, half-blind by the clouds concealing the moon.

It had been a few weeks after Ghoul had been infected by some crazy man at the bar she worked at. After that, she had been left to wander the city, her memories of her previous life plunged into darkness.

Not too long ago she'd met Noose, and the two had simply traveled together, walking aimlessly.

Mainly through Noose's incompetence, the two had now found themselves lost in a forest.

"Darn it, Noose," Ghoul grumbled as she got her foot stuck in the wet grass. "I thought you told us you knew where you were going?"

"I miscalculated, okay," Noose defended himself, and dodged under a tree branch. "We just need to find ourselves out of this forest, and we'll be on our way."

Ghoul scoffed and rolled her eyes. As she tried to figure out any directions that led out of the forest, she vaguely noticed a few men wearing black and holding guns, trekking through the forest.

Realizing they were Freaks, Ghoul grabbed Noose and yanked him onto the ground, whispering, "Get down!"

The two flattened themselves on the ground behind a bush, and heard the crunching of leaves as the men walking through the forest, nearby.

"You find any of those walkers?" Ghoul and Noose heard one of the men call out. They held their breath, trying their best not to make a sound, lest the men hear them and discover them.

"No, haven't found any," Another man called out. Ghoul let out a sigh of relief. Hopefully, the men would leave, and they'd be on their way.

Suddenly, a voice far off called out, "Hey, I found one!"

Ghoul froze, and for a moment she wondered if they had been found. However, she soon heard the sound of footsteps moving away from her and Noose's location. Mustering up the courage to peek her head up from the bush, she saw the men rushing off towards a small hill. She watched on carefully to see what was happening.

"Hey, it's a little girl!"

Ghoul's ears perked up when she heard what one of the men said. Suddenly, out of her better judgement, she felt compelled to follow the men to get a better look at what was happening.

Seeing Ghoul leave their hiding spot, Noose whispered, "Hey, what are you doing? Come back here! Do you wanna get yourself killed?"

"Shut up," Ghoul whispered back, and continued to walk through the forest towards the men. Noose groaned, and got up and followed her.

The two slowly crept through the forest, careful to be as quiet as possible. They ducked behind trees whenever possible, all to try and remain hidden. Soon enough, they came across the hill to see what was happening.

They saw that there were four men in total, surrounding something. Ghoul looked closer, and saw that they were all leering over a young girl, lying unconscious on the soft grass.

"Is she dead?" One of the men asked, giving the young girl a soft pick.

Another man checked her pulse, and said, "Nope. She's breathing."

For some reason, Ghoul felt relieved. She continued to watch on, and heard one man say, "Hey, look at her skin. She's infected."

The men immediately backed away from the young girl, and Ghoul instantly dodged behind a tree to avoid being seen. Peering from behind the tree, she continued to watch on.

One of the men asked, "What do we do?"

"You know our orders," The other man said. "Shoot and kill."

Ghoul's eyes widened in shock, and she almost left her hiding spot. She stared down at the young girl laying unconscious, then up at the men.

One of them looked hesitant. "I don't know, man," He said, shaking his head. "It's just a kid."

"It's dangerous," The first man pointed out, aiming his gun at the girl. Ghoul stared down at the young girl, and studied her. She didn't look dangerous at all. She just looked like a little girl.

The first man had a stony look in his eyes. "If none of you will do it, I will," He declared, and he cocked his gun.

Ghoul narrowed her eyes at the man. She was well aware of the danger she was putting herself in with what she would do next, but she would not stand by and let a young child be shot to death while defenseless.

As the man raised his gun and prepared to fire at the young girl, Ghoul let out a scream and suddenly flung herself from behind the tree towards the man. The other men in black all let out shocked screams as the woman dove towards the man.

The armed man heard Ghoul before he saw her. He whipped around quickly just as Ghoul struck the gun out of his hand. Quickly, before the man could react, she lashed out, slashing his face with her nails. The man let out a shout, and crashed onto the ground.

As Ghoul whirled on the other men, Noose suddenly rushed out, carrying a large rock. He smashed the rock into one man's head, knocking him out cold. With surprising agility, he whirled around and struck the other man in the face, and he went down as well.

Seeing his three comrades unconscious, the final man instantly dropped his gun and took off through the woods, screaming. Ghoul and Noose then saw several feral men and women come out of the darkness and pursue the man.

Noose was about to follow them, but Ghoul grabbed him by the shoulder, and he stayed. Slowly, the two turned to the young girl. Cautiously, Ghoul approached the unconscious girl.

Kneeling down over the girl, Noose lay a hand on the girl's forehead. Her skin was turning cold. She also noticed that her shoulder had dried blood on it. Quickly, she grabbed a few leaves and pressed them against the girl's wound to try and stop the bleeding.

"What do we do now?" Noose asked as he, too, sat down next to Ghoul. The two stared down at the girl, and Ghoul felt her pulse. She was breathing.

Ghoul thought to herself. She knew they couldn't abandon the girl. If they did, she would likely be killed by another Freak.

Without thinking twice, Ghoul blurted out, "We'll protect her."

"What?" Noose asked as Ghoul took the girl in her arms and lifted her up. The young woman carried the young blonde girl in the direction of the nearest neighborhood, Noose following close behind.

"Ghoul, are you crazy?" Noose asked her. "We can't look after a child."

"Who says we can't?" Ghoul retorted, cradling the girl's head in her arms. "We'll take her back to the neighborhood, and come up to check on her every now and then."

Noose was about to argue, but he realized that she had made up her mind. With a sigh, he asked, "What are we going to call her?"

Ghoul thought to herself, letting her gaze drift. It was then that she noticed that the girl was wearing a bright yellow jacket.

Yellow jacket.

"I know," Ghoul said, brightening up. "We'll call her Yellowjacket."

* * *

". . . Then, not so long afterwards, we met Sawbones and then we became a group," Ghoul finished her story to Jill. "But now we've just lost both of them, and we're down to two."

The three had stopped walking, and were now sitting on a bench. Ghoul was hugging her legs on the seat.

"I miss her so much," Ghoul confessed, and she let a tear slip down her cheek. "If only I could see her again." She hung her head low in sadness.

Jill stared at Ghoul, feeling pity for the younger woman. She had listened to Ghoul's story, and her contempt for the woman had quickly been replaced for empathy.

This woman had saved her daughter from death. She'd stayed with her instead of abandoning her.

Jill's heart sank when she realized that Ghoul had done something she and her husband hadn't: they'd remained with her. As she let that thought mend itself into her mind, she wondered if she was really a better mother than Ghoul, a zombie.

As she remembered all the Others she had met in recent days who had changed her perspective of a supposedly dead world, she wondered if she should really make an exception with these two.

Slowly, Jill stood up. "Let's go," She said softly to the two.

"What?" Ghoul asked, looking up at Jill.

"You heard me," Jill said, turning to stare down at Ghoul, and she noticed a small smile on Jill's lips.

"Let's go find our daughter."

* * *

 _Read and review._


	63. The Battle for the Hideout

_Al Drin Hoshizora: *sigh*_

 _Js: Lazy indeed._

 _Korrasami 88: Great..._

 _I am a burglar: Uh-huh..._

 _MrScourch:...That's why Riley was going to use strategy (referring to your third point)._

 _Antha1: Huh. I actually forgot about that._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Btw, where's the others? Where's Gloyd, and Minty, and stuff?_

* * *

Jill, Ghoul and Noose ran as fast as their legs could carry them. They weren't fully aware of the circumstances, but they knew that if it had gotten nearly the entire city to move, it must be bad.

"You know, I didn't know zombies. . . I mean Others, could run so fast," Jill commented to the other two as the raced down the street. "But, then again, there's a lot of things about zombies I didn't know about 'till I met one!"

As they ran, Noose pointed out, "So, we saw Sawbones' cronies attacking in the streets earlier! I think they have to do with why everyone's moving!"

"Who?" Jill asked.

"Sawbones, the guy with the knives!" Ghoul explained to her. "He lives in a big asylum, I think, we these feral people!"

"I think he must have released them!" Noose said. "We have to tell the others before something really bad happens!"

"We're never going to get there in time on feet!" Ghoul pointed out to them. It was then that Jill noticed a parking garage nearby, multiple cars and trucks nearby. She immediately stopped running, signalling for Ghoul and Noose to do the same.

A smirk appeared on Jill's face as she saw the cars.

"Who says we have to go on feet?" She asked.

* * *

Back in the Freak building, things had quickly devolved into chaos. When news that the entire city's population of Others were converging onto their location, the Freaks had instantly panicked.

Some of them fled to the basements to try and find some place to hide. Others took the opposite approach and dashed upstairs to find some high ground. A few even tried to escape from the building itself, but they were immediately detained by the guards.

"Are you crazy?!" One guard asked one of the fleeing women. "If you run out there, you'll be swarmed in seconds!"

In spite of this, the people continued to panic. In the chaos, Bill and Margaret ran through the crowded space, trying to find Margaret's mother.

"Quiet!" A booming voice shouted from above. All heads whipped up to see Joe, a microphone to his mouth. Once he saw that he had everyone's attention, Joe resumed speaking.

"Everyone, I know why you're scared!" He said, loud enough so everyone heard him. "We've all had our nasty encounters with ferals in the city! Now, they may have us outnumbered, but we must remember that we have something they don't!"

He paused for a moment, letting his last sentence reverberate throughout the building. Finally, he said, "We have our brains. The ability to think, strategize, and persevere."

The crowd stood still, reinvigorated by Joe's words.

"What we're facing is a crowd of mindless, walking corpses! They do not have the resourcefulness that we possess. Now, we are going to show them the might of true manpower, and they will not be able to withstand it!"

As he spoke, the crowd heard a loud banging on the building's door. Joe instantly stopped talking when he heard it.

A silence ensued, and a voice, outside the door, shouted, "The Boss. We want the Boss!"

". . . Is that George?" Bill whispered to Margaret, who stared at him in confusion, not knowing who he was talking about.

"Bring out the Boss, and nobody will get hurt!" The voice, identified as George, commanded through the door.

"Zuul!" Another voice shouted as well. The crowd stared at the door in confusion.

"Shut up, Rob!" The first voice shouted.

". . . Sorry," The second voice apologized.

"They can talk?" One man asked out loud. The crowd murmured in curiosity.

"There's more of us out there?" One of the more intelligent Others murmured. The Other in the building instantly stood up and wandered to the door in shock.

"Get back!" Joe shouted down to them, and the Others instantly recoiled. Looking to the door, and directing his following words to whoever was behind it, Joe defiantly shouted, "Screw you!"

There was another silence, and the voice behind the door let out a sigh. "I guess we're going to have to do this the hard way," The voice said.

Joe turned to one of his men and said, "Get all the gunners and send them out. We're going to blast those zombies to pieces! Now do your job!"

Bill watched as the man went off to get the guards. He looked to the door, conflicted. He knew his daughter was bound to be with the Others, if she was still alive.

As much as he wanted to speak out, he knew nobody would listen.

He simply hoped Riley would make it out alive.

* * *

A few minutes later, the doors to the building swung open. Instantly, dozens upon dozens of armored men armed with machine guns and other artillery marched out through the door to meet the swarm of Others on the streets for battle.

"Shoot to kill, men!" One of the leading men reminded the others. They loaded their guns, and rushed out of the building, guns aimed. Soon, hundreds of gunmen were on the streets.

Then, the men stopped.

Outside the building, the streets and sidewalks were vacant. The hundreds of thousands of Others they had been informed were crawling on the streets had totally vanished. It was as if nobody had been there in the first place.

"Where did they go?" One of the men whispered as he looked around. The men all took a perimeter, trying to find evidence of an Other nearby.

". . . Did we scare them off?" One man asked hopefully.

He was soon proven very wrong. Just then, the men heard the sound of screeching metal on the ground. The men turned to the direction of the noise, and they all let out a collective gasp as they saw several armored buses, overturned on the street. They were all forming a line on the street, and they were being pushed towards the men by an unseen force.

It didn't take long for the men to realize what was happening. "They're behind the buses!" The leading man shouted, and instantly, the men took aim at the buses and fired their bullets at the buses.

It was no use. The bullets ricocheted off the armor, and the Others continued moving the buses forward. As they did, several more Others appeared on the other streets, this time moving overturned cars, trucks, and other vehicles towards the building.

The men found themselves being boxed in, but they continued firing regardless, not realizing the hopelessness of the situation.

Behind one of the armored buses, George's voice called out, "You know, you're just wasting bullets!"

"Shut up, George!" Shelley shouted next to him.

The men immediately stopped firing as they realized just how futile it was. By then, the armored vehicles had was only a few feet away from the men on all sides.

There was silence. The men could hear a bit of shuffling coming behind the vehicles on the streets. Then, a group of men noticed a shadow over them, and they looked up to see a motorcycle then shoved off a building and towards them.

"Duck and cover!" One of the men shouted, and they instantly scattered to avoid the falling motorcycle.

Then, the Others attacked. The man watched on in awe as multitudes of Others rushed from the tops of building and leaped through the air, grabbing onto overhead utility poles and swinging above head.

The men were caught unprepared as the Others dropped from the poles and fell on them, bringing them to the ground. More Others laddered down the pole and rushed at the armored men, tackling them and knocking the guns out of their hands.

The leading gunman stumbled around as his men were ambushed from the skies. With little options, he simply shouted, "Shoot! Dammit, shoot!"

The men fired up into the air to the best of their ability, but most of the shots missed their targets. The Others continued to swing overhead, dodging the random bullet fire.

Mary hung from one wire, and watched as the Other in front of her got hit by a lucky shot and soundlessly dropped from the fire. Her look of shock changed to fury, and with a growl, she swung off the pole and down towards the men, tackling one of them and tearing the gun out of his hands. She struck the man closest to her with the gun, knocking him onto the ground.

Suddenly, Yellowjacket soared onto one of the armored buses, and shouted, "Go!"

Instantly, dozens of Others swarmed over the buses and towards the men. Before they could take aim, they were engulfed by swarms of Others and dragged to the ground. The men who didn't get immediately swarmed fired their bullets indiscriminately, and a few Others were struck and went down. However, even more continued coming.

Others rushed from the alleys and towards the men, ramming into them and throwing them onto the ground.

"Zuul, mother-truckers!" Rob cried as he barreled between two trucks and into a group of men, sending them flying. Blackjacket crawled onto the ground throughout the chaos, and tied one man's shoes. The man quickly toppled onto the ground and was covered by Others.

In desperation, one man flung a grenade towards the Others. Suddenly, the grenade was caught by Shelley, who whipped it back. The men quickly shouted out and scattered in a panic as the grenade went flying towards them and exploded, sending a few men flying.

Yellowjacket stood on the bus, directing the Others as they quickly overwhelmed their enemies. She looked up at the Boss' hideout, and narrowed her eyes.

Aiming an arm up at the Others hanging from the poles, she shouted and pointed towards the top of the building. The Others grunted in response, and they quickly began swinging towards the building, dodging the decreasing number of bullets flying into the sky.

Once they reached the building, the Others smashed through the windows and entered into the building. Even more Others swarmed through the windows as well.

"They're getting in!" The leader shouted out. As he did, he felt a giant hand grab his shoulder from behind. Turning around slowly, he was met with Rob.

"Hey," The large zombie said, grinning and winking.

The man gulped.

* * *

In another section of the city, Sawbones and his swarm of ferals vaguely heard intense gunfire and fighting coming from a building.

Sawbones narrowed his eyes, and growled. He knew instantly that this was where the Freaks were. And if there was a fight, that meant the Others were there, as well.

Thus, Yellowjacket would be there, too.

With a howl, Sawbones aimed a finger in the direction of the building, and immediately, swarms of ferals dashed down the streets towards the building. Sawbones followed them.

"It all ends tonight!" He growled.

* * *

 _If you see it, review it._


	64. Demolished

_Korrasami 88: Okay..._

 _Antha1: So, how was the rest of the fight?_

 _NexusOscura: Oh, where have you been lately? Kinda been missing your reviews._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: They're the good guys._

 _MrScourch: Well, at this point, Joe is the boss._

 _I am a burglar: You're not leaving, are you? I mean, practically the whole population is here. You're going be pretty lonely if you skip._

 _The Batista: What?_

 _Creamy Buttercap: Okay..._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Um, who? The Freaks or the Others._

* * *

As the fighting intensified at the front of the Freak Hideout between the Others and the gunmen, an even larger mass of Others emerged from the back of the building, and began to advance towards the hideout.

Yellowjacket had given the order for them to remain hidden until the building's defenses had been lured out to fight the Others at the front. Then, while they were distracted by the Others that would meet them at the front, the building would be left defenseless, and the rest of the Others could attack from behind.

At the front of the crowd, Pale Girl dashed out, a gun in her clawed hands. She dashed towards the fire exit at the back of the building, and rammed into it to try and break in. One of the larger Others lumbered over and effortlessly smashed through the exit door, and Pale Girl instantly burst in. Quickly, the crowd of Others followed, shoving their way into the fire exit. They ran up the stairs and into the building, anticipating the shock of the Freaks when they saw how cleverly the Others had gotten in.

Pale Girl, on the other hand, was thinking solely of the Boss. Tonight, she would finally meet the man who had caused her so much pain. Then, their rivalry could finally come to an end.

* * *

Within the building, the crowd of Freaks waited in the main area of the hideout, all of them huddled together as they listened to the sound of the battle raging outside.

The sounds of gunfire, screaming, and destruction was heard by the crowd, and a few people trembled in fear. While they couldn't see what was happening outside, what they heard was giving off the impression that things weren't going well for them.

The sounds of windows breaking in the upper sections of the building caused nearly the entire crowd to quake in unison. The sound of Others growling and heavy footsteps upstairs only stimulated their terror.

"They're inside!" One man shouted out in horror. A few men and woman began to shout out in terror as they saw the walls of the building start to get dented as the Others outside began to break in.

Bill held Margaret's hand tightly as he tried to get her as far away from the front of the crowd as possible. There was no doubt now that the Others would soon get into the building, and there was no telling what they might do.

As the two slowly pushed their way to the back of the crowd, Bill heard sounds coming from the former Boss' cell. "Stay here," He ordered Margaret, and he then broke out into a run towards the hallway leading to the Boss' cell.

As soon as he got to the Boss' cell door, he quickly twisted the doorknob and threw it open. He saw the Boss was standing up, and his eyes held an air of confusion in it.

"What's going on?" He asked, concerned.

"The Others are attacking the hideout," Bill quickly explained. The two heard the sound of another window getting smashed threw, and Bill added, "They're winning."

The Boss groaned, and punched the wall. "Dammit!" He shouted in frustration. He suddenly rushed out of the cell, and Bill didn't bother stopping him. The sounds of the Others breaking into the building from all sides echoed throughout the hideout as the two rushed down the hallways.

When they finally reached the crowd of Freaks, Bill and the Boss could hear screaming coming from the front of the crowd. The Boss roughly shoved through the crowd to get to the front, Bill following closely.

When they finally reached the front of the crowd, they saw the doorway, on the brink of collapse from getting rammed into by an unseen force outside the building. The crowd tensed with each ram, watching the door give away with each strike.

Then, suddenly, the doorway was smashed through by an armored bus. The crowd all let out screams of horror as the bus nearly ran several people over, but came to a stop a few inches away from the Freaks.

The front of the bus was covered in rubble, and the Freaks froze, staring at it in wonder. Then, the doors to the bus were kicked open, and the four college-aged Others strode out casually.

"Make way, everybody," George warned the crowd of Freaks as they backed away. "Make way. General Yellowjacket is coming through."

"General What?" Bill asked, as if he'd heard incorrectly.

"Zuul, mother-trucker, Zuul," Rob bellowed out. Instantly, the crowd of Others poured into the building through the utterly demolished entryway. The crowd of Freaks all screamed in horror and were about to turn and run, but were shocked to see another crowd of Others blocking the way. They had been the ones who had sneaked in from the rear.

As the Others surrounded the Freaks from all sides, Bill noticed the familiar figure of his daughter's silhouette, concealed by the dust. Yellowjacket stumbled over the rubble and into the building, coughing slightly from the wreckage. Blackjacket was by her side.

"Riley!" Bill shouted out.

"Hey, dad," Yellowjacket said, acting disinterested. Then, she turned her attention from him and looked up in the direction of the Boss' personal quarters.

"Come out, Boss!" She demanded, narrowing her eyes. There was a tense silence, the Freaks and Others not saying a word.

Then, slowly, Joe awkwardly shambled out from the crowd and to the front, in view of Yellowjacket. His hands were up, and he meekly said, "We surrender."

Yellowjacket stared at him in disbelief. "What?" She sputtered out. "You're not the Boss."

"I am, now," Joe pointed out. "Eh, the former Boss was. . . impeached."

Yellowjacket pouted. "Come out, ex-Boss!" She shouted again.

"Alright," A voice said from in the midst of the crowd. Yellowjacket turned to the voice, and saw the Boss shuffle out of the crowd and past Joe. He looked different, now, Yellowjacket noticed. His jacket was in tatters, he was walking with a hunch, and his glasses were missing, revealing his dead eyes.

The Boss had hardly gotten a few feet when, suddenly, a small, pale girl soared out over the crowd and towards him. Yellowjacket jumped as Pale Girl body-slammed the man with such force that he went crashing to the ground.

The Boss groaned and rubbed his sore head. As he sat up, he was swiftly kicked in the face by Pale Girl. The Patient Zero hissed at him, and swiped her claws at him.

"Okay, I get it, I get it," The Boss said, shielding his face. Pale Girl growled, and got on all fours, circling him as the crowd watched.

"Booosss," She sneered in hatred, narrowing her eyes. Pulling the gun out from behind her back, she aimed the gun at the man's face. The Boss stared at the barrel of the gun, sitting up.

"So, I guess this is it," The Boss whispered, stretching. Pale Girl was misled to see a look of coolness in the Boss' eyes, rather than fear.

"I get it," He said, heaving deeply. "You hate me. Me and my dad hurt you, and you want payback. I understand, child."

Pale Girl stared at him, her eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Why. . . are you. . . not scared?!" She asked, every word an effort.

The Boss was silent for a moment before answering. "Because I know what being dead feels like," He said, simply. "And if I'm the only one you really want, and if you'll leave the others when I'm gone, then I'm clean of my past mistakes." With that, he closed his eyes.

Pale Girl stared at the Boss in shock, her mouth hanging open. When she had imagined this moment, she'd didn't think it would pan out like this.

It wasn't fair. She wanted him to feel fear, to feel pain, like she had. She'd been waiting for this day for so long, and he wouldn't even grant her the reaction she desired.

"Patient Zero," Yellowjacket whispered, and slowly put a hand on her shoulder. However, Pale Girl swatted her away, and continued to stare at the Boss. She aimed the gun at his forehead, and prepared to pull the trigger.

Suddenly, the sound of a car zooming towards the building filled everyone's ears. Yellowjacket and Pale Girl spun around to see a car driving towards the demolished entrance. Immediately, the two dove out of the way.

The car dove inside the building, stopping next to the bus. Yellowjacket stared at the car, wondering who was inside. Pale Girl stared on in confusion.

The doors to the car were kicked open, and Jill, Ghoul and Noose all rushed out. They turned around for a few moments, and their eyes all rested on Yellowjacket.

"Yellowjacket!" Ghoul shouted joyously, and she rushed towards her. Before Yellowjacket could comprehend what was happening, Ghoul wrapped her arms around her and lifted her into the air, spinning in joy.

"I thought I'd never see you again!" She said, tears of joy streaming down her face. Yellowjacket slowly returned the hug as Ghoul stopped spinning, and set her on the ground.

"You. . . you're not surprised?" She asked. When Ghoul furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, Yellowjacket pointed at her skin, which wasn't pale anymore, and said, "I'm different, now. I'm a Freak."

Ghoul gave a weak smile, and said, "Oh, that doesn't matter. Look at how Freakish I've become." It was then that Yellowjacket realized that Ghoul didn't look as corpse-like as she once had.

"Oh, Ghoul," Yellowjacket whispered, and she wrapped her arms around Ghoul, who returned the hug.

"Aw. . ." The crowd all said, touched by the embrace.

Nearby, Bill ran up to Jill. "Honey!" He shouted out in horror when he saw her. It was then that Jill remembered that she was still wearing zombie makeup.

"No, Bill, it's not like you think-"

"Oh, Jill!" Bill shouted out in horror, collapsing on his knees. "It's my fault this happened to you!"

"No, I'm not-"

"I should've been there!" Bill cried out in grief. "I should've done something!"

"I'm not a zombie!" Jill shouted out to him. Bill slowly looked up, and said, "What?"

"This is makeup," She whispered to him. It took a few moments for this to register into Bill's mind, and then he said, "Oh, thank heavens!" Then, he enveloped his wife in a deep embrace. The two were about to kiss, but they noticed George, Rob, Mary, Shelly, and Blackjacket all staring at them, smirking.

"Oh, rack off, will ya?" Bill said, waving them off. It was then that the two noticed Yellowjacket. She'd stopped hugging Ghoul, and was now staring at them, a conflicted look in her eyes.

Slowly, the two approached Yellowjacket. They were both happy to see their daughter again, but when they noticed the look in their eyes, they were mystified.

"R-Riley?" Jill asked as she extended her hand towards her daughter. "Are you alright?"

As her fingers brushed against Yellowjacket's shoulder, the young girl shuffled backwards. A bitter look was in her eyes, and the two were surprised to see tears streaming down her cheek.

"I know what happened," She whispered, her muscles tensing. "How I got infected. . . How I became lost. . ."

Bill and Jill stared at their daughter in dismay. "Riley, we're so sorry," Bill said, guilty. "We tried to stop that man from biting you-" He stopped when he saw Yellowjacket's expression change.

"Is that what you think this is about?" She asked, her shoulders bunching up. The crowd all stared at her, silent.

"Riley. . ." Jill whispered.

"Mom, dad, I forgive you for not stopping that man," She said, her lips quivering. She shut her eyes tight. "But why. . . Why. . ."

Her eyes opened, and Bill and Jill were shocked to see burning anger in her pupils.

"Why did you abandon me to die?!"

* * *

 _If you see it, review it!_


	65. Riley Remembers

_A/N: So, re-reading parts of the story, I noticed that it was Noose, not Ghoul, that seemed the most concerned about Yellowjacket in the first half of the story. That was obviously before I decided to make Ghoul think of herself as a mother-figure for Yellowjacket. Anywho..._

 _NexusOscura: Just glad you're back._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Meh._

 _Razorback 234: Burglary? Where?_

 _MrScourch: Well, the Others did have a major numbers advantage. It does make sense that a portion of them would outnumber the Hideout's defenses. I mean, they did number in the hundreds of thousands._

 _Korrasami 88: What?_

 _Js: Well, you'll find out._

 _Antha1: Well, she also hasn't seen her husband in some time._

 _I am a burglar: Seriously?_

* * *

"Why did you abandon me to die?!"

The question speared Bill and Jill's hearts like a sword. As they stared into their daughter's eyes, they saw a look of anguish that only someone in the utmost pain could make.

By now, all eyes were on the three. The previous fighting that had taken place had been pushed to the side in favor of this new development. Most of those present had no idea what was happening, including Yellowjacket's friends.

Bill knew that remaining silent wouldn't solve anything. "Riley, it's not what you think," He said, taking a step forward and reaching towards his daughter. 'We can-"

Yellowjacket moved away from him. "Oh?" She asked, narrowing her eyes. "Was you leaving me alone in the forest while I begged for your help just imagined? Or the fact that after a year, you didn't bother coming back home to see if I was still there. It was only pure luck we stumbled upon each other."

"Riley, what are you talking about?" Mary asked, moving away from her brother and friends. Ghoul and Noose stood behind Yellowjacket, confused as well.

"But we found you," Jill pointed out, trying to shine some optimism in the situation. "We took you back."

Yellowjacket picked out Margaret (or as she knew her, Meg) out of the crowd. "What about her?" She asked. "Her mother stayed with her. She never turned into a mindless monster because she was with her. If you'd stayed with me, I'd never have hurt all those people."

Bill and Jill looked like they wanted to say something, but they remained silent.

"I could've been a zombie forever, mom," Yellowjacket said, turning to face her mother. "What if I forgot who you were entirely? I'd never see you again!" Tears trickled down her cheeks, her blue eyes watery.

Bill and Jill collapsed at Yellowjacket's feet. Putting a hand on Yellowjacket's cheek to sooth her, Jill whispered, "Riley, we know you'd never forget us. No matter what happens to us, we're family."

Yellowjacket sniffed, wiping the tears out of her eyes.

"We're sorry, Riley," Bill confessed. "That night. . . we thought you were gone for good, but I just couldn't put an end to it. But now, I see that I was wrong."

Yellowjacket had stopped crying, but her shoulders were slumped. She looked to the floor, forlorn.

"I know what we did was horrible, and there are no excuses," Bill said as he held his daughter's hand. "But please, I just hope you can forgive us." He wrapped his arms around his daughter, and held her close. Jill did the same, tears streaming down their cheeks.

At that point, Ghoul walked close. "Yellowjacket," She whispered, resting a hand on her shoulder. "I don't know if this will help, but if they hadn't done what they did, we never would have met, and I wouldn't have a reason to still be here."

"You helped us regain our. . . humanity," Noose said, smiling.

This time, George stepped forward. "If it wasn't for you, we'd never have become friends with those Fr-" He was cut off by Mary elbowing him, and he said, "Your parents."

"Yeah, what he said," Rob said.

Their kind words brought comfort to Yellowjacket's torn heart. She suddenly returned the hug, and whispered, "I missed you, mom and dad. . ."

And as she finally embraced her parents, she could feel a glow emitting in the bowels of her mind...

* * *

 _ **(In Yellowjacket's Mind)**_

The five emotions stood at the console, watching the embrace. "Oh, I can't stay mad at them!" Star confessed, her glow returning to her. "I'm not supposed to get mad, anyways."

"Word," Nerve agreed. It was then that the emotions noticed a glow emitting from behind them. Slowly, the five turned around to see the core memory console. To their shock, the dim core memories were starting to glow their original color.

"What's. . . going on?" Brick asked, a little perturbed. Star definitely wanted to find out, as she raced to the tray as the core memory console was activated, and the memories glowed brighter than they had ever had before.

One memory in particular was glowing brighter than the others. Star noticed that it was both blue and yellow. She soon realized that it was the memory that had first glimmered when she met her parents for the first time in a year.

Slowly, she tenderly picked the memory up. As the emotions gathered around it, they saw clearly what was happening.

In the memory, they saw Riley. Not Yellowjacket, but Riley. She was embracing her parents in their former house, her eyes filled with tears.

They didn't know why, but the five emotions instantly remembered.

 _"I miss home."_

"Home," Star whispered, her glow brightening.

 _"I miss Minnesota."_

"Minnesota," Star whispered once more. As her eyes widened in shock, she looked up. "Riley. . ."

Slowly, she set the memory back in the tray. As she did, the memory surged, along with the other core memories. Almost instantaneously, the Headquarters brightened, and the emotions saw the other memories on the memory tray gleam with life.

"Wow. . ." Teardrop said, a smile shining on her face.

Star heard something happening outside the Headquarters, and she rushed to the window, the other emotions trying to keep up with her. Before she even go to the window, she saw it happening.

Family Island was coming back. And so were the other Personality Island. She saw Hockey Island, and Tragic Vampire Romance Island. There were a few she'd gained as an Other, including Adopted Island, powered by her first meeting Ghoul and Noose.

As the emotions watched on, everywhere outside the Headquarters was suddenly brought back to life after being dead for a year. After so long, they were returning. The Long-term Memory, the Dream Productions, Imagination Land... they were all returning.

Staring outside the window, Brick said, "I don't get it."

Star, however, did. "Anger, don't you see?" She asked. "We're coming back!" Suddenly, she realized that she remembered her name.

Joy.

"Sadness," She said, turning to Teardrop.

"Me?" Teardrop, or rather, Sadness, asked. Star turned to Nerve and Pixie and said, "Fear! Disgust! We're back now!" Her aura glowed as she began to return to her original form.

"We. . . we are?" Fear asked, a nervous smile appearing on his face. As realization sunk in, the emotions slowly gave a shout out in joy.

Riley had come back.

* * *

Jill and Bill held their daughter close, and as they did, they could feel their daughter's skin turn warm. Slowly, they broke out of their daughter's hold, and their eyes widened in shock.

Yellowjacket didn't look like an Other anymore. Her skin, her eyes, her hair. . . they had all returned to the way they were. Nearby, Ghoul's eyes widened in shock as she witnessed Yellowjacket's change.

She wasn't the only one.

"OMG," Mary whispered, covering her mouth. The crowd all stared at Yellowjacket in shock.

Yellowjacket slowly stood up, and she looked around, then at her hands. She let out a gasp when she saw that they were normal-colored.

"Riley. . ." Jill whispered, not believing her eyes.

Slowly, Yellowjacket looked up, her eyes a bright blue color. "I. . . I remember," She whispered.

"What?" Bill asked, as if he'd heard incorrectly. Slowly, they saw a smile shine on Yellowjacket's face.

"Mom, dad, I remember!" She said, her eyes lighting up. "My name is Riley Andersen!"

As Bill and Jill gaped in shock, Riley dove towards the crowd and picked out Blackjacket. "Jordan!" She cried out to him, pulling him into a hug. "You're name is Jordan!"

"It is?" Blackjacket, or Jordan, said in shock. Then, he shrugged and said, "Figures."

"Meg!" Riley said, turning and pointing to Margaret in the crowd. "You're Meg!"

"Well, it's short for Margaret," Meg's mother corrected, then added, "But, I digress."

Whirling on her parents, Riley said, "Mom! Dad! I remember everything now! I remember Minnesota, and the time we spent together! I remember school, the hockey, everything! You're my mum and dad!"

Jill and Bill stood still for a moment, still comprehending everything. Finally, realization sank in, and the two suddenly cried out in joy and rushed towards their daughter, scooping her up in the air.

"Riley!" Bill said, tears of joy streaming down his face. "Your back! Our monkey's back!" He planted a kiss on his daughter's cheek. Near them, the crowd all smiled, touched.

Even Pale Girl smiled a bit.

"Oh, I'm so happy!" Riley said as she was set back on the ground. "I could just-"

Suddenly, a man dove through the demolished entrance, a panicked look on his face. "Zombies are coming!" He shouted out in a panic, interrupting the Andersens and directing everyone's attention to him.

". . . What?" George asked, looking around in confusion. "We. . . we're already here."

"A swarm of savage zombies are coming this way!" The man cried out in a panic. "They're coming towards the building! We're doomed!"

The crowd, Others and Freaks, all let out a gasp. "The feral Others?" Mary said in shock.

Pale Girl stared at Mary, her mouth agape. She turned to the Boss, and pointed a finger at him. "You. . . didn't create them?"

"Yeah, not gonna lie, I'm as lost as you are," The Boss confessed, shrugging.

Ghoul and Noose ran to the forefront of the crowd. "They're being led by a man named Sawbones!" Ghoul explained to the crowd. "They were locked up in some loony bin, but he must've broken them all out!"

"These guys were crazy before the apocalypse struck!" Noose added. "They're crazy even by our standards! Sawbones must've sent them to attack us in the first place!"

"Why would he do that?" George asked.

Riley stared at Ghoul and Noose for a moment, then gasped. "It's because we're changing!" She exclaimed to the crowd. "Sawbones saw that we were turning human again, so he must've broken those ferals out to re-infect us or something!"

"But you can't infect an Other," Ghoul pointed out. "Unless their Freaks, it won't do anything!"

"Yeah, but that still puts everyone in danger!" Shelley retorted. "We got to do something, quick! Before they arrive!" The crowd all began to murmur among themselves, trying to decipher what to do. Things were about to descend into chaos, but the Boss raised an arm.

"Everyone, we need to calm down!" He called out to them. Surprisingly, even though everyone knew he was a zombie, they listened.

"We need a plan, here," The Boss explained to the crowd. "And I think that may require. . . all of us."

Pale Girl instantly snapped a look at the Boss, who noticed it. He realized that she still didn't trust him. However, he added, "If we don't, we all may die."

Riley stepped forward, and grabbed the Boss' arm. "If you mind my suggesting," She said. "I might have a plan."

The Boss turned to stare down at her. Riley looked up at him, and turned to the crowd, declaring, "Remember everyone; we have the advantage here! We can find a way to persevere and defeat them! It may be hard, but we'll find a way. We're human; it's what we're best at!"

The crowd all turned to stare at her. Riley took a deep breath, but Ghoul suddenly stepped in.

"I know this may seem crazy, but I think the kid has a point!" She said to the crowd. "We are changing! We can work together! I know we're all scared, but if we can stick together, we can win!"

The crowd was silent for a moment. Then, a voice murmured out, "So, what do we do?"

It was Jordan.

Riley thought hard for a moment. Then, she gained a determined look on her face. "I think I have a plan," She said, a smile appearing on her lips.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	66. Final Battle - Blitzkrieg (Pt 1)

_A/N: Just a heads up, but since she's reverted, 'Yellowjacket' will from now on be referred to as Riley._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Yes, she's back._

 _MrScourch: She's special because she's the main character... in all seriousness, though, Riley had to spend a portion of the story piecing together her memories before she could finally fully revert. The other, more intelligent Others didn't really spend that much time trying to fully retrieve their memories, even if they did have some recollection of their past._

 _Korrasami: What?_

 _NexusOscura: Hm. Maybe being a zombie in this world WOULDN'T be all that bad._

 _I am a burglar: Don't you dare._

 _Antha1: She hasn't switched sides so much as formed an alliance with both._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Are you psychic?_

* * *

Nearly twenty minutes, the streets were once again vacant. On the roof of multiple buildings, Others were crowded on top of them building, overlooking the streets. Another portion of them with within the buildings, staring out the windows.

Within the Freak Hideout, all the Freaks were huddled up within the building, many of them holding guns. After the entrance had been demolished in the previous battle, the Freaks had used the armored buses as a way to block the entrance to prevent the ferals from getting through.

Within the buses, the gunners had their guns pointed out of the shattered windows and aimed at the streets, waiting in anticipation for the ferals to show up.

At the higher section of the building, Riley stood with her closest allies, staring at the streets where she knew Sawbones and the freaks would be coming from. Her parents were standing next to her, each of them holding Riley's hand. Behind them, Ghoul and Noose stood with Blackjacket and the other four.

In the same room, the Boss was sitting in a corner, loading one of his guns, when Pale Girl wondered up to him. She glared daggers at him.

The Boss stared up at Pale Girl, his stoic gaze not leaving. "Look, I really understand your pain," He explained to the young girl. "What me and my dad did was wrong. But now, worse things are at stake. The whole city."

Pale Girl's face softened, and the Boss got up. "I was hoping we could put the past behind us, just for tonight," He explained to her. When Pale Girl didn't respond, the Boss handed her one of his guns.

Pale Girl stared at him suspiciously, and hesitantly snatched the gun from him. She then turned away from him and stared out the window overlooking the streets.

As everyone watched, their breathing slowly stopped. Everything went silent.

On the streets, the sound of heavy footsteps began to echo throughout the hideout. As the sounds of deranged cackling filled the ears of everyone present, there was no doubt that the ferals had arrived.

* * *

Sawbones stood at the edge of the Freaks area. Behind him were hundreds upon hundreds of ferals, all of them frozen behind him, waiting for him to give the signal.

Sawbones growled, suspicious at the emptiness of the general area. Slowly, he turned to the swarm of ferals before him. Letting out a screech, he aimed an arm down one side of the street. Immediately, a section of the ferals tore down that street. Then, Sawbones pointed his finger towards the opposite street, and another portion of the ferals rushed down that end.

Then, Sawbones pointed at the main street, and the rest of the ferals rushed down the street towards the Freaks hideout.

Instantly, the once silent air was replaced with the sound of deafening screeches as the swarm made itself known. They overturned cars and dove over vehicles as they scrambled towards the large Freak building.

Soon, the Freak building was in sight. As they advanced at a rapid pace, they could see the gunners in the armored buses, their guns facing them. In spite of this, they persisted. After all, the gunners couldn't shoot all of them.

At the top of the Freak building, the Boss rushed to the window next to Yellowjacket. As he saw the swarm fill the streets, he shouted, "Fire!"

Instantly, the gunners began shooting out the broken window and towards the swarm as they scrambled towards the building. The ferals at the front lines were quickly shot and collapsed on the ground, more ferals tripping over their bodies.

In spite this, the ferals persisted, shoving through the cars or jumping over them. As they rushed towards the building, they picked up glass shards or stones and hurled them at the armored buses, some striking the gunners and throwing off their fire.

Within the building, the Freaks watched as the gunners before them tried to hold off the ferals. Margaret stood next to her mother, the two huddled together for comfort.

On the streets outside, blood sprayed on the walls and streets as the ferals continued to rush forwards amidst the gunfire. Though several of them had been wounded or killed by the gunfire, hundreds more came. It soon became plainly obvious that the outnumbered gunners wouldn't be able to hold them off forever.

Suddenly, Riley rushed towards the window, and she raised her hand in the air and shouted, "Now!"

The ferals heard Riley's scream, and they briefly halted their charge to look up at her. It was then that they saw the Others appear at the roof of the buildings surrounding them. Despite their decayed minds, they soon realized that they had been fooled.

Instantly, several Others threw lighters down at the streets. As the lighters landed on the pavement, the streets were set aflame, a wall of fire rising around the ferals. It was then that the ferals realized that the ground below them was drenched in gasoline.

The fire spread across the streets, and the ferals either fled the fire or tried to run through it. Their bodies, lit aflame, rushed towards the hideout and were promptly shot down.

Many of the ferals escaped the fires grasp, and they began to smash through the doors and windows leading to the buildings around the hideout. The ferals started diving through the broken windows and doors and crawled into the building to reach the Others.

Within the buildings, the Others met the ferals and engaged them in battle. Some of the Others hurled televisions, chairs, or other hard objects at the ferals as they swarmed into the buildings. More Others met the ferals in combat, tackling them and grappling with them. They knew the ferals couldn't infect them.

The Others continued to spray tanks of gasoline on the streets to enlarge the fire and force the ferals to retreat. As the fire expanded in size and heat, the ferals began to screech in agony. Despite this, some managed to make it to the armored buses. They rammed into the buses, trying to break into it and then pass through towards the hideout.

The gunners tried to shoot the ferals as the approached, but they couldn't get all of them. A few ferals punched through the walls, and some gunners were grabbed and pulled out of the buses.

As the ferals were now close enough for the gunners to see them, some of them had to stop and gape in awe. The ferals were truly monstrous-looking creatures, covered in wounds and some missing limbs.

The gunners had seen Others before, but even they were horrified by the sheer grotesque of the ferals. Their briefly surprise allowed the ferals to begin to swarm the buses, smashing through the windows and doors. Others climbed over the buses, and began to make their way towards the building.

As the Freaks saw the ferals start to make it to the entrance, they immediately started shooting themselves. The few ferals that made it through were gunned down within moments.

"We're doing it!" Margaret said to her mother in brief joy, gripping her hand. "We're pushing them back!"

However, within moments, the Freaks' joy vanished.

* * *

Riley and her friends stared down at the streets, watching as the ferals before them were either burned to death or gunned down. For a moment, she was relieved that they were actually winning. It seemed her plan was working.

Then, she, and everyone else in the room, heard screeching coming from a different section of the streets.

Riley's skin paled, and she slowly looked out the window and towards the street on the right of the building. The others did the same.

She gasped as her fears were confirmed. She saw, on the left and right of the building, more ferals converged down the streets which hadn't been dowsed with gasoline. And they were heading right towards the building.

"Sawbones tricked us!" She said in a panic. "He didn't send all of them to the main street!"

While a few gunners were stationed at the sides of the building, they were quickly overwhelmed by the ferals. Some of the Others on the buildings tried to hurl weapons down at the ferals to keep them away from the hideout, but there were too many.

In seconds, the ferals reached the sides of the building. They began to smash through the windows to gain entry into the building. Others used their claws to climb up the side of the building towards the higher sections.

Slowly, the ferals began to chip away at the armor of the building, and managed to create an entrance.

Then, they spilled into the building.

* * *

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	67. Final Battle - Apocalypse (Pt 2)

_Korrasami 88: Not quite._

 _Js: Hope you stick around to the end._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Indeed._

 _I am a burglar: Maybe, maybe not._

 _The Batista: Refer to the first response._

 _NexusOscura: Well, about Sawbones... I wouldn't actually say he's "feral". There are three Others: the ones who are reverting, the ones who aren't, and the savages. Sawbones is the second one, which explains why he's more intelligent, and is leading the latter ones._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Meh._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Are you there? Then you can't judge._

 _MrScourch: Huh. I didn't actually consider gunners on the roof._

 _Antha1: Well, to be fair, Riley didn't really anticipate the ferals were smart enough to find alternate routes to the hideout._

* * *

 _ **(In Riley's Mind)**_

As Riley saw the ferals began to force their way into the building, the emotions were panicking at the console.

"We're doomed!" Fear cried in terror. "They're going to get in, and then they're going to infect and eat everyone!"

"Are we going to become a zombie again?" Disgust asked, petrified at the idea.

Joy, standing still at the control console, raised her hand and silenced the other emotions. "Everyone, calm down! Now, we may have underestimated them, but that does not mean we've lost! We have to keep a cool head, find a way to strike back!"

The other emotions turned to Joy, somewhat inspired.

"Now, we may not be as strong as those zombies, but there's something we do have," Joy said, invigorating the other emotions. "We have our humanity! We can work together!"

"Think fast!" Disgust suggested.

"Smash things!" Anger shouted, slamming a fist into the palm of his hand and giving a dark smile.

"Then come on, guys!" Joy said. "Let's do this thing!"

* * *

"What are we going to do?" Mary asked in a panic, biting her nails in anxiety. Outside the building, several ferals were crawling up the side of the Hideout and towards the windows to break in.

Riley, snapping to attention, said, "We're going to fight back! They may have gotten through the building, but that does not mean they've won!"

Bill, who was shooting a handgun at the ferals crawling up the building, suddenly said, "There's too many of them! We're going to have to leave this room!" As he spoke, one feral sprang up towards the window and screeched in Bill's face, but was suddenly socked in the mouth by George, sending it flying off the wall and plummeting to the ground below.

Pale Girl rushed towards the window, and screeched down at the ferals. "Keep away!" She hissed at them, and started firing her gun wildly at the ferals. Most of the shots missed, but several ferals were distracted by the sudden bullet fire, dislodging their grip on the walls and causing them to fall off.

Despite this, more ferals were coming. Despite the bullets picking them off, more kept on coming. And they were getting dangerously close to the window.

"We have to go, now!" The Boss told the others. As he did, he cocked his gun and fired it at the window, and Bill gasped and ducked as a feral that had lunged at him from the window was shot in the shoulder, sending him flying from the window.

The group began to flee from the window as more ferals crawled towards it. Riley and the Boss threw guns to them as they rushed through the door. As more ferals began to crawl through the window, the Boss and Riley began to shoot at them to keep them at bay. Riley rushed through the door as well, and the Boss did as well. As he did, he could see the ferals swarm the room.

Shutting the door behind him, the Boss pushed a large dresser behind it to barricade the door.

"What do we do now?" Blackjacket asked.

"We need to cover more ground and secure the building!" Riley said quickly. "We'll split up into two groups!" Pointing to Bill, Ghoul, Noose, Pale Girl and the Boss, she said, "You, come with me!" Turning to the rest, she said, "Go protect the people in the building."

"But Riley-" Jill started, but was cut off by Riley unexpectedly wrapping her arms around her mother.

"I'll be safe, mom," She said, planting a kiss on her mother's cheek. "Just protect the others, okay."

Jill slowly nodded, letting a tear stream out. "Okay Riley," She said. With that, she turned in the opposite direction, followed by Blackjacket and the college aged Others. The rest of the group turned in the opposite direction.

"Come on!" Riley said, raising the gun over her head. The, they charged down the hallways.

* * *

Jill's group rushed down the hallways, turning in one direction and dashing down it. They could hear the sounds of the ferals screeching and shambling around the building, some coming in their direction.

As they ran down the hallways, one feral suddenly raced out of another hallway and cut them off. Screeching, the feral ran towards them, but Jill dodged under the feral's arm. Spinning around, she struck the feral in the head with her gun, knocking it on its face.

"Move, move!" Jill shouted, and the group continued on its way. Rob ran ahead of Jill and smashed through the door of a room, revealing a family of Freaks, with two ferals advancing on them.

"Get away from them!" Jill shouted, and fired two blasts from her gun, downing one feral. The other feral lunged at her, knocking Jill to the ground.

"Jill!" Mary shouted, and she tackled the feral. The two grappled with each other, but the larger feral grabbed Mary's leg and shoulders, lifted her up over his head, and then slammed her into the ground, knocking the wind out of her.

As Mary lay, stunned, on the ground, she saw the feral leer down on her, drool dripping down his jaws. As he prepared to bite her, he was struck in the face by a guitar, sending his jaw jutting into the air.

Mary's eyes widened, and she looked up to see Blackjacket, holding a guitar. Wielding it like a bat, he roared and struck the zombie multiple times, sending it stumbling towards the window. As the feral recovered from the blow and knocked the guitar out of Blackjacket's hands, Rob barreled into him, sending him flying out the window, his screeches echoing throughout the night.

Turning to the family, Jill said, "Come on!"

"Let's get you to safety," Rob said to a young girl as he picked her up and carried her. Then, the group dashed out the room.

Continuing down the hallway, Jill's group found more Freaks hiding throughout the building, and urged them through the hallway. They were set upon by more ferals, but the group gunned them down as they advanced upon them.

As they exited down a flight of stairs and reached a larger corridor, the group found themselves cut off by a group of ferals. As the savage zombies descended upon the ground, the one at the front was suddenly struck in the head by a garbage can.

Jill jumped, and looked to see who had done it. Her eyes widened in shock.

"Bob?!" She shouted in disbelief.

"Go!" The overweight Other said as the other members of her former group appeared out of the darkness and faced the ferals. "We'll hold them off!" With that, the Andersen's former group and the ferals charged at each other.

Jill's group then rushed in the opposite direction. As they did, they found a demolished wall, with a ladder lying next to it.

"Go!" Jill said, pointing to Rob. Quickly, the large Other rushed to the ladder, and he and a few other Freaks grabbed it and pushed it out of the wall. The ladder was just the right length for it to reach another building with reverting Others on top of it.

"Go, now!" Jill urged the Freaks. Quickly, the Freaks began to walk or climb over the ladder towards the building, the Others on the roof urging them forward. Below them, the Others and Freaks battled amid the burning streets.

Jill's group fired down at the ferals on the streets as they rushed towards the building, some on fire. Jill, meanwhile, guarded the ladder, staring into the darkness of the building, her gun ready in case any ferals appeared.

As she did, she hoped Riley and Bill's group were doing okay.

* * *

Riley and Bill's groups rushed to the main section of the building, where they found the crowd of Freaks, all of them in a panic as they realized that the ferals had gotten into the building.

"We're all gonna die!" One man cried in a panic.

Striding to the front of the crowd, the Boss fired one bullet into the air, snapping everyone's attention to him. "No, we're not all going to die!" He bellowed out, slinging the gun over his shoulders. "Remember, everybody; we still have the advantage over these creatures; we just have to find it!"

As the crowd quieted down, Riley ran to the Boss' side, and said, "We have to find a different strategy to fight!" She pointed out. "Everyone, what is the thing you do best? Whatever it is, use it now! That's what makes you yourself!"

As the crowd was reinvigorated, they heard the sounds of the ferals beginning to converge upon the main section of the building.

"Spread out, everyone!" Riley commanded everyone. "This buildings' a big place! Don't let them box you in!"

Taking Riley's advice, the crowd began to scatter to different sections of the building, some to try and find a way to escape. As they did, ferals appeared from the doors and hallways, throwing themselves at fleeing Freaks.

Pale Girl fired the gun wildly at the ferals, knocking them over. As more ferals converged upon her, Pale Girl threw away the gun and lunged at them, tackling the ferals to the ground and clawing them.

Bill and the Boss stood, back-to-back, firing at the ferals as they rushed towards them. Close to him, Noose kicked one feral in the gut, sending him flying back. Grabbing another, he flung him at the Boss, who shot him immediately.

Ghoul, who wasn't quite familiar with how to fire a gun, used it as a bat, striking ferals as they lunged at her. Using a spinning kick, she floored one feral. However, another feral took the opportunity to grab her from behind and lift her into the air.

Whirling upon the two, Riley ran towards them, shouting, "Don't touch her!" She then slammed the butt of her gun into the zombie's face, causing him to let go of Ghoul. The black-haired Other proceeded to kick the zombie right in the face, sending him flying through the air.

As more ferals converged upon the area, a group of Other suddenly rushed out of the hallways, charging at the ferals. The two groups of zombies threw themselves at each other, grappling with each other on the ground.

As Riley rushed towards the hallway where a group of ferals were coming from, she froze in shock.

There, standing at the door, was a giant feral wearing clown makeup. His mouth was covered in red, but she couldn't tell if it was makeup or blood.

"Have some candy," The clown feral growled as he lumbered towards Riley, his arms outstretched. Riley froze in shock, petrified as her childhood fear confronted her.

As the feral clown neared her, however, Riley suddenly snapped out of her trance, and she let out a growl and charged at the feral. The clown swiped at her with his large arms, but Riley ducked under them and proceeded to ram into the feral clown, her head colliding with the feral's gut. The feral clown let out a gasp of air as the wind was knocked out of him, and Riley sent the giant clown flying towards a group of ferals, knocking them through a door leading to a flight of stairs. The ferals plummeted down the steps, bouncing all the way, and landed in a heap at the bottom of the stairs.

The clown looked up, letting out an animalistic groan, and saw Riley, standing at the top of the stairs. The clown's eyes widened as Riley grabbed a shelving rack, and proceeded to send it hurtling down the stairs towards them.

Riley slammed the door, and heard the sound of the rack crashing at the bottom of the stairs where the ferals were. She simply nodded, and turned to where her dad was.

"Come on!" Bill said, urging the group towards the demolished exit. Leaving the zombies to battle, the group ran towards the armored buses amidst the gunners, who were continuing to shoot at the ferals on the street.

Pushing their way through the buses, the group soon found themselves on the street. Multiple ferals were running through the streets, covered in flames. On the roof of the buildings, Others were raining down weapons upon the ferals.

Ghoul turned her head, and saw Jill's group at the demolished wall, climbing aboard the ladder towards the other building.

"There they are!" She shouted, alerting the group to their presence. "Come on!" Immediately, the group rushed towards the building where Jill's group was heading. They couldn't wait to reunite.

However, as they did, they didn't see a scarred Other with butcher knives in his hands, watching them on the sidewalk as they rushed down the streets. With a growl, the Other rushed after them.

The Other was Sawbones.

* * *

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	68. Final Battle - Rooftops (Pt 3)

_Korrasami 88: Indeed, he is._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: What would Bing Bong do?_

 _I am a burglar: *sigh*_

 _Antha1: That was a typo. Anyways, yes, they're cured. Riley pulled off that feat of strength because... I wanted her to have a moment of awesome._

 _The Batista: Okay._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: What?_

 _MrScourch: Greedy tactics? I don't get it._

* * *

In the hideout, the crowd of Freaks ran through the rear exits of the building. Behind them, a swarm of ferals crawled after them. Some Freaks were overrun by the freaks as they relentlessly pursued the crowd. Behind the crowd, Joe was shooting bullets at the ferals to keep them at bay.

In the midst of the crowd, Margaret and her mom could see an exit from the building which the Others had used to enter beforehand. "We're almost there!" She said. However, the ferals were catching up to them at a fast pace.

The front of the crowd dashed through the exit and spilled onto the streets. As they exited, Meg and her mother could see the Others on top of the buildings, watching them from above.

As the last of the Freaks exited the building, Joe tried to shut the door before the ferals got through. However, just as the door was about to close, it was smashed open as the ferals barreled through it. They spilled onto the streets after the Freaks.

Above, the Others watched as the ferals attacked the Freaks below them, unsure of what to do. They had ran out of weapons to throw, and these streets weren't dowsed in flammable gasoline.

Then, it occurred to them. Yellowjacket had told them to fight back using what they did best.

At the front of the building, one former athlete Other jumped off the side of the building. Grabbing onto an overhead utility pole, the Other swung from it and proceeded to land on one of the ferals, knocking him to the ground. She then elbowed the feral in the throat, stunning him.

As the ferals watched, the Others threw themselves off the building, using the poles to slow their falls. As they landed on the streets and sidewalks, they charged at the ferals to attack. Immediately, the ferals rushed them as well to battle them.

But they were totally unprepared for the battle to ensue.

As they were within arms length of each other, one Other dodged under a larger feral and grabbed him by the waist. Hoisting the feral into the air, the Other bodyslammed into the pavement, knocking the air out from his chest. Next to them, one teenage Other slid on the ground and kicked the legs out from a charging feral, causing him to trip and land on his face.

One Other stood next to a car, and a feral dashed at him. At the last moment, the Other jumped out of the way, and the feral crashed right through the glass of the cars windows. The Other then grabbed the feral, pulled his bloodied face from the glass, and slammed his head into the ground.

One large Other grabbed the doors from a car, and rushed at two ferals, slamming the car doors into them and pummeling them into the ground. One feral pounced on his back, but two female Others tore the feral off of him and dragged him to the ground.

Margaret crawled away from the battle, and noticed a manhole lid on the ground. As two ferals dashed towards her, she grabbed the lid and, with a surprising burst of strength, hurled the lid at them. The lid struck both ferals in the face, knocking their teeth out, and they crashed onto the ground.

As the Others overtook the ferals, Margaret tried to see if she could find any sign of Riley or Jill's group. Her eyes wandered above, and she saw a ladder connecting the hideout to a smaller building.

And on that ladder, she saw Jill's group.

* * *

Riley's group ran into the building that Jill's group was heading to. They hoped to reach the top of the building and reunite with Jill's group on the way. Then they could figure out a new strategy of attack now that they were away from the danger of the hideout.

The group encountered a few ferals, but Riley and the Boss gunned them down before they could attack. Within moments, they were racing up the stairs to reach the roof of the building.

In moments, Noose was out of breath. "How many more. . . stairs?" He asked, practically dragging himself up the steps.

"Maybe Jill's group has some chocolate for you," Pale Girl taunted as she dashed up the stairs. In seconds, she'd reached the door leading to the roof of the building. As soon as she shoved it open, Riley dashed past her and into the roof, shouting out, "Mom!"

"Riley!" Jill shouted back to her. By now, she and the rest of her group were balancing on the ladder, the family they'd rescued holding it still so they could cross. The Others on the roof had joined the battle below.

As Riley's group ran to the ladder to help them cross, Riley began to rush after them. She couldn't wait to feel her mother's warm embrace once they crossed the ladder.

However, she was taken off-guard when she saw Jill's group on the ladder all get a panicked expression on their face as they stared in Riley's direction. Jill shouted something to her and waved her arms in a panic, but Riley couldn't quite hear what she was saying over the sounds of the battle below.

It took her a second for Riley to realize Jill was warning her.

A large, cold hand seized Riley's shoulder from behind. Riley nearly screamed as the hard nails pinched her skin, and she was flung onto the ground. Looking up, her eyes filled with fear, she found herself face-to-face with Sawbones.

The old zombie looked enraged, his scars more pronounced in his angry state. His eyes were filled with hatred as he looked down at Riley and saw that she was no longer an Other. His butcher knives were clenched in his left hand. With his right, he reached down, grabbed Riley by the neck, and hoisted her into the air.

"Riley!" Jill shouted, and she struggled to race across the ladder. However, in her panic, she slipped. Jill let out a scream as she lost her footing and fell, only to grab onto the edge of the ladder, handing from the edge over the hard pavement.

"Jill!" Mary shouted, and she and her friends carefully walked on the ladder towards her to try and help her up.

Sawbones' fingers tightened around Riley's neck. Riley's face turned red and tears began to stream out of her eyes as she grabbed Sawbones' wrists in a futile attempt to pry his grip from her neck.

"S-Sawbones," She choked out, feeling lightheaded.

Ghoul and Noose turned to the two. "Sawbones!" Ghoul shouted, taking several steps towards him. "Don't do this!"

Sawbones turned to face Ghoul. "She's a Freak!" He growled at her, and Ghoul paused for a moment, seeing the anger in his eyes. However, she fought past her fear and stepped forward, saying, "This is still our Yellowjacket. We may be changing, but that may not be so bad."

Undeterred, Sawbones raised his knives in the air. "You're just as Freakish as her, Ghoul," He growled as he aimed the knives at Yellowjacket's neck. "When I'm done with her, you two are next!"

Suddenly, a burst of bullets sprayed in Sawbones' direction as the Boss fired at him. Ducking under the bullets, Sawbones released Riley, who collapsed onto the ground, gasping for air. Sawbones whirled on the Boss and flung one knife at it. The Boss shouted out in pain as the knife ripped into his shoulder, and he fell onto the ground, dropping the gun.

Sawbones turned back to Riley, who was scrambling on the ground away from him. As Sawbones advanced upon her, he was tackled by Ghoul and Noose. The two grappled with him, shoving him up against the door.

"You won't touch her!" Ghoul shouted at him, kneeing Sawbones in the stomach. The older zombie doubled over in pain, gasping for breath, and Noose brought his fists down on Sawbones' back, bringing him to his knees. However, he suddenly struck out, striking Ghoul in the gut and swiping Noose's legs out, causing both of them to collapse onto the ground.

As Sawbones got up, he was unexpectedly tackled by Pale Girl, bringing him down. The girl pinned Sawbones to the ground and slashed at his chest with her claws. Sawbones shouted out in pain as he shielded his face with his arms as Pale Girl tore into his skin. One swipe slashed Sawbones' face, leaving five bloody scars in his face. Sawbones let out a growl of anger, and he threw Pale Girl off of him.

The zombie girl went flying through the air and slid across the ground towards the side of the building. Her eyes widened as she felt herself slide off the edge of the building, and she quickly grabbed onto the edge of the roof to keep herself from falling to her death. Her claws bit into the side of the roof as she hung for dear life.

Sawbones got up and lumbered towards Riley, who, along with the family, was trying to prop the ladder back onto the roof so that Jill and her group could get across. As Sawbones neared them, Ghoul once again threw herself at him, causing him to briefly falter. However, he grabbed Ghoul and lifted her into the air, and violently threw her against the wall of the door. Ghoul's body crashed against the wall, and she collapsed on the ground, dazed.

With her out of the way, Sawbones continued towards the ladder. Riley turned and saw him coming, and turned to Jill's group, who were trying to pull Jill up onto the ladder. "Come on," She said, urgently.

Just as Sawbones neared her, a voice next to her cried out, "Hey!"

Sawbones whipped his head in the direction of the voice. His eyes narrowed when he saw that it was Bill.

Riley's father stood tall, holding the Boss' gun. He had the gun aimed at Sawbones.

The older zombie stared at Bill, looking as if he were silently goading Bill to fire. He was within arms length of Riley, who was still holding onto the ladder.

"Step away from my daughter," Bill ordered, the gun aimed at Sawbones' head. Sawbones glared at him for a moment, before turning back to Riley. He took a step forward, regardless of what happened.

Bill didn't let him take another step. He pulled the trigger.

Nothing came out. Bill froze as he realized that the gun was out of ammo.

Sawbones grinned as he, too, realized that the gun was useless. "Fool," He whispered. Turning back to Riley, he raised the knife over his head, when Bill threw the gun away and called out once more, "Why don't you take it up with me?"

Sawbones stopped, and turned back to Bill. Riley's father got into a fighting stance, his fists raised as he prepared to take Sawbones on in combat. "My life for hers," He declared, challenging the older zombie.

Sawbones considered this for a moment. Then, he turned to face Bill and tossed all of his knives to the ground. He then straightened up and prepared to face off with Bill.

As the two men faced each other off, however, Sawbones suddenly lunged towards Riley, who dodged out of the way. The Freaks, seeing the zombie coming, suddenly jumped from the roof and onto another building to escape from him.

However, Sawbones wasn't aiming for them. His leg shot out and kicked the ladder, and it was flung from the roof, Jill and her group on it.

"No!" Bill shouted.

Jill's group screamed as they and the ladder fell from the roof. Quickly, Riley slid towards the edge of the roof, and just barely caught the ladder as it fell. The ladder stopped in midair, and Jill's group all jolted as their fall was halted. They all grabbed onto different parts of the ladder to keep from falling.

Riley gritted her teeth as the weight of the occupants on the ladder quickly dragged her to the edge of the roof. "No, no, no. . ." She said repeatedly as she neared the roof. Suddenly, a hand grabbed her leg, and she craned her head around to see Noose, lying on the ground, holding onto her to keep her from falling. Behind him, Ghoul, still injured from crashing into the wall, held onto him as well.

Bill stared at them, and sighed in relief. Then, he turned to Sawbones as the zombie approached him, and he narrowed his eyes.

"It's you and me now," He said. Sawbones growled, and stopped, taking a stance. The two stared at each other for a moment, neither of them moving.

Then, they both charged.

* * *

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	69. Final Battle - Demolition (Pt 4)

_Korrasami 88: Who?_

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: =_=_

 _The Batista: Okay..._

 _Creamy Buttercap: I hear you._

 _I am a burglar: Fine._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Okay..._

 _Candlehead: 'Bout time you showed up._

 _Minty Zaki: He's out of shape._

 _MrScourch: The ladder was kicked off the edge of the roof, Riley caught the top of it as it fell, and she's trying to keep it from falling. Not sure what's so hard to understand._

 _Js: Oh, thanks._

* * *

The Others and the ferals battled on the streets with each other. Though the Others had the ferals outnumbered, a few of the savage zombies managed to break past their defenses and attack the Freaks as they attempted to flee.

"We have to get to the buildings," Joe said to the crowd as he shot at the ferals to keep them at bay. As he did, he didn't notice one feral lung at him.

"Joe, look out!" Margaret shouted, but it was too late. The feral slashed Joe's chest with his claws, and Joe let out a blood-curdling shout. Another feral tackled him, and the two viciously bit and mauled Joe on the ground.

"Get off of him!" Margaret's mother shouted, and she rushed over and grabbed one feral by the collar, prying him off of Joe. As she did, a group of Others tackled the ferals, dragging them off of a bleeding Joe.

"Joe!" Margaret cried in horror when she saw him. Joe's chest had five bloody gashes in it, and his body was covered in cuts and marks. He coughed, blood on his mouth.

"Get. . . out of here," He whispered, raising his arm to point down the street. His arm then collapsed on the ground, and Joe's breathing slowed to a stop. Margaret was about to run to him, but her mother grabbed her and pulled her back. The crowd then rushed down the street towards the nearby buildings as the Others and the ferals continued to battle.

* * *

On the roof, Bill and Sawbones rushed at each other. The two men slammed into each other, pressing their weight against the other as they grappled. Sawbones attempted to bite Bill, but missed.

The two broke apart from each other, and then ran at each other again. Bill ducked under Sawbones' arms and landed a blow to his gut. The older zombie doubled over, wheezing in pain, and swiped out, just barely missing. He then slammed his fist into Bill's face, knocking him to the side. As Bill recovered from the blow, Sawbones backhanded him, sending him stumbling backwards towards the edge of the roof. He steadied himself, and rushed back towards Sawbones.

Nearby, Riley, Noose and Ghoul held onto the ladder as it hung from the edge of the building. Riley groaned as the weight of the ladder and its occupants strained her arms. It was taking all her strength to keep from letting go of the ladder.

"You're going to be alright, you guys," Noose called out to Jill's group as they hung from the ladder.

"We're gonna die!" George shouted up at him. "We're gonna die! We're undead, but we're still gonna die!"

"Could you just _climb up_ already?!" Ghoul cried out. Immediately, Jill's group scrambled up the ladder to get to the roof. Shelley was the first one up, grabbing Noose's shirt to pull herself to the top of the ladder. Rob climbed up after her.

"Rob, get your fat ass out of my face!" George shouted up at him.

"Sorry!" Rob shouted down at him. His large arms gripped the side of the roof, and the Boss, still injured from the knife wound, used his good arm to pull him up.

George and Blackjacket scrambled up the ladder next. Soon, the only ones left on the ladder were Jill and Mary.

"Mary, you have to climb up!" Jill shouted down at the younger zombie.

Mary bit her lip and looked down at the street hanging below her. She gasped and shut her eyes tight, clutching the ladder bars tightly. Jill looked down at her, and her eyes widened when she looked at the street.

The fire that had started on the main street was beginning to spread to the other streets as well. Several nearby buildings began to catch on fire quickly as a result of the gasoline.

"Mary, climb up now!" Jill shouted, more urgently now. "That's an order!"

Shaking, Mary climbed up the ladder, her eyes still tight. Jill extended an arm, and grabbed Mary's shoulder. As the two continued to climb up the ladder, Bill and Sawbones continued to fight nearby.

"Freaks have no place in this world!" Sawbones bellowed as he swung blow after blow at Bill, striking him repeatedly. Bill blocked one blow, and punched Sawbones in the face, causing him to growl in anger. Bill struck him once again, and Sawbones collapsed on the ground, next to one of his knives.

Glaring, Sawbones grabbed the knife and sprang at Bill, swinging the knife at him repeatedly.

"Die, Freak!" Sawbones shouted, bringing the knife down on Bill's head. As he did, Bill grabbed Sawbones' wrist, stopping the knife.

"Things are changing," Bill said, shoving Sawbones back. "People are changing. It won't matter if you kill me; you won't win!"

Sawbones growled, and hurled the knife at Bill, who dodged under it. As he did, Sawbones rushed at him, grabbing Bill by the throat and hoisting him to his feet. His claws extended, Sawbones prepared to slash Bill, but Bill grabbed his arm. He then kneed Sawbones in the gut, and knocked him back.

As he fell, Sawbones caught sight of the Boss' gun. Collapsing on the ground, Sawbones scrambled towards the gun and grabbed it, pointing it at Bill, who stopped in his tracks.

Sawbones narrowed his eyes and gritted his teeth as he aimed the gun at Bill, his index finger on the trigger.

"Dad!" Riley shouted from behind him.

"Bill!" Jill cried out. She and Mary climbed to the top of the building, and the group was about to rush towards the two, but Bill raised a hand and halted them.

Bill stood in place, breathing heavily. As he stared at the gun, he said, "I thought only Freaks used guns."

Sawbones growled as he got to his feet, the gun still on Bill. He froze for a second, and stared at the gun still in his hands.

"Face it, Sawbones," Bill said, straightening up. "You're more Freakish than you think you are."

Sawbones let out a growl of anger, and he hurled the gun off the roof before lunging at Bill, who dodged under him. Sawbones grabbed his knife and rushed at Bill, swinging it at him. Bill slammed his wrist into Sawbones' shoulder, temporarily stunning him. Behind Sawbones, the group pulled the ladder to the top of the building.

"Hello!" A rather screechy voice shouted. It was then that the group remembered that Pale Girl was still hanging from the ledge. Quickly, they raced over to her to help her up, Rob setting the ladder up against the wall.

Sawbones pushed Bill up against the wall. As he lunged with the knife, Bill jumped up, pressed against the wall, and kicked out, jamming his foot into Sawbones' face. As the old zombie collapsed on the ground, he noticed the fire spreading down the street.

Turning to Bill, Sawbones shambled towards him, and the two continued to trade blows. Bill got in a lucky shot, and slammed Sawbones' face against the wall. Bill stopped briefly to catch his breath, and approached Sawbones, fists clenched.

Sawbones saw him coming, and let out a growl. Then, he grabbed the ladder and toppled it towards Bill, who gasped and dodged out of the way of the falling ladder. It clattered on the ground with a crack. Half of it landed over the edge of the roof, and the rest dropped off towards the street, vanishing in the flames below. This only intensified the fire below, which crackled and hissed as it rose above the streets.

"Crap!" Ghoul said through gritted teeth as the fire expanded. As Riley reached out to grab Pale Girl's arm, the building briefly shook as a result of the fire expanding to it. Pale Girl shouted out as she lost her grip on the building, and began to fall.

Suddenly, the Boss removed his trench coat and swung it down towards the falling Pale Girl. Quickly, she grabbed onto the coat, and hung over the fire raging below her. The Boss groaned, feeling his arm tear as a result of the knife wound.

As the rest of the group held onto the coat, Jill turned to Bill and Sawbones, who continued to grapple. Narrowing her eyes, Jill pulled her hair up, and rolled back her sleeves. Then, she let out a shriek and entered the fray.

Sawbones was caught off guard as Jill rammed into him from the side. As he lashed out at her, Bill punched him in the gut, causing him to double over in pain. Jill promptly grabbed his head and kneed him in the face, causing him to stumble into the wall. He stumbled into the wall, holding his bloody nose. He growled in pain and rage as he stared at Bill and Jill, his eyes ablaze.

Nearby, Pale Girl was continuing to climb up the jacket. As she did, several tiny bomb detonators hidden in the Boss' jacket fell out of the pocket, and began to fall into the fire below.

The Boss' eyes widened in horror. "Uh-oh," He whispered. As the group saw the tiny bombs fall down the side of the below, they immediately shouted out and ran off to get as far away from the destruction before it began. Pale Girl grabbed onto the side of the building, and scrambled to the top of the roof, running after them.

The bombs landed in the fire, and immediately, they exploded, right next to the building. The entire building shook, and everyone inside or on the roofs stumbled and fell. A section of the building was blast apart as a result of the fire and the bombs. As it did, one side of the roof tumbled, cracks appearing on the walls.

"No, no, no!" Riley shouted as she felt the building below her feet start to shake. She crashed onto the ground, and cracks began to appear around her. Helpless to stop it, she could only watch as the building began to collapse, as a result of the explosion, the fire, and its own age.

Riley saw everyone around her began to fall through the collapsing roofs and into the building as it caved in. Bill, Jill, Ghoul. . . they're screams echoed through the night.

Then, it was her turn. She felt the roof she was lying on give away, and start to break.

A shrill, blood-curdling scream pierced the air as she dropped through the roof and into the building. The debris collapsed after her almost immediately afterwards.

Then, darkness consumed her.

* * *

 _Read and review._


	70. My Name Is Riley

_I am a burglar: You do that._

 _Candlehead: Of course you are._

 _Minty Zaki: Okay..._

 _Olaf: Well, you are a snowman. You'd just come back together, right?_

 _Korrasami 88: Seriously?_

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Pffft...Trading Oaks from Wandering Oaks._

 _Gloyd Orangeboar: Of course._

 _The Batista: O_o_

 _MrScourch: Yeah, when you're forced to make war strategies, you're bound not to think every detail through._

 _Antha1: Antha, if you think I'm killing off the entire cast of characters in a Downer Ending, then I don't know what to say._

 _Creamy Buttercap: Sure you would._

* * *

Darkness. That was all the emotions could see and feel.

The Headquarters had been plunged into a cold and bitter blackness that obscured any light. It was as if a shadow had been cast over Riley's mind. And all anyone could feel was fear. And a loss of hope.

The emotions began to wonder if this was what death felt like. To have all light extinguished, and any hope for your future snuffed out. They felt nothing, except the lonely call of the Grim Reaper, beckoning them forward to accept its embrace.

But Joy refused to listen to its call.

"No," She whispered. She didn't speak out of fear, or despair. She spoke out of determination.

"No," She said, firmer, and she felt herself gain control of her body. She raised a trembling arm to grab hold of the console. It hurt, it hurt so much. She almost wanted to let go, and allow herself to plunge into the abyss.

But for the sake of Riley and her parents, she couldn't.

With shaking legs, every move an effort, Joy dragged herself to her feet. She leaned on the console, breathing heavily. As her glow returned to her, she caught sight of the other emotions, all of them around her. They stared at her in disbelief, as if they couldn't believe what she was doing.

Staring into their hopeless eyes, Joy almost felt her determination falter. Her grip on the console loosened, but then she whispered, "I did not. . . come this far. . . to die now." As she whispered this, the Headquarters started to glow again.

The other emotions heard her, and she saw them slowly pull themselves off the ground, their terrified faces changing to slow determination. The Headquarters brightened even more.

The last to get up was Sadness, who lay on her knees, facing Joy. The golden emotion stared down at her, and then extended her hand. Sadness stared at it for a moment, as if unsure.

Then, she took Joy's hand.

"Come on," Joy said, and she smiled. "Let's do this."

* * *

Riley's eyes snapped open. Looking up, she saw that it was about morning. She realized, to her shock, that several hours had passed.

Her eyes darted back and forth as she tried to see where she was. She was lying under a large piece of debris, her upper body uncovered. She pushed herself to sit up, and looked around. Her eyes widened as she found herself lying at the edge of the half-collapsed building, hanging over the side of the drop.

Quickly, Riley threw the chunk of debris off of her. Dragging herself to her feet, she saw that the building had undergone extension damage. One side had nearly been blown apart, and the roof had totally collapsed. In spite of this, the lower section of the building managed to remain upright.

Riley looked around, and saw that a few other buildings had similarly collapsed. Below her, the fire was still churning on the streets, but it wasn't as large or dangerous as it had been hours ago. On the streets, she could see a few injured people, but there were scarcely again ferals left.

Riley's eyes widened as she remembered that she wasn't the only one who had been in the building when it collapsed. "Mom?!" She called out, her heart racing. "Dad?! Ghoul?!"

For a few moments, she heard nothing. Then, to her shock, she saw a fist punch through the debris, and Noose pulled himself out of the rubble, gasping for air.

"Noose!" Riley called out, directing his attention to her. "Where are the others?"

Noose shrugged and shook his head. As he did, a head burst out of the rubble, and Riley was relieved to see it was Ghoul. Noose immediately ran to her aid, grabbing her by the arm and pulling her out of the rubble. It was then that Ghoul revealed that she was holding Shelley.

The blonde zombie coughed a bit as she regained consciousness. Immediately, she sprang up and shouted, "Where are the others?!"

"H-Here. . ." A voice weakly called out.

"George!" Shelley shouted, and she limped over to another section of the building, walking over the debris. She grabbed a large chunk of debris and pushed it off, revealing George and Mary, lying on Rob.

"Don't worry," George said, revealing a chipped tooth. "Rob's fat ass broke our fall."

Rob's eye fluttered open, and he whispered, "Screw you."

Shelley leaned over Mary, who was unconscious. "Hey Mary," She said, shaking the slightly younger zombie girl in her arms. "Mary, you feel like waking up now. Wakey-wakey."

When she got no response, Shelley frowned and said, "Don't you freaking ignore me."

Riley, meanwhile, was rushing around, pulling the debris off of trapped Freaks and Others alike. She saw a pale hand sticking out of the rubble, and she rushed over, pulling the debris off and saying, "Don't worry. I'll have you out of this in a-"

However, she froze when she uncovered enough debris to see who it was. "Oh, no. . ." She whispered.

Sawbones' hand shot out and grabbed Riley by the throat. The old zombie burst out of the rubble and lifted Riley into the air. His side was bleeding, and he was obviously in pain, but he ignored it.

Surprisingly, instead of looking terrified, Riley's expressions softened. "It's over, Sawbones," She whispered, resting a hand on the arm he was using to hold her. "It's over now. The world is changing, and you have to accept that."

For a moment, Sawbones' expressions softened. He turned around to stare at the damaged buildings around him, and sighed. However, then he shook his head and turned back to Riley. He whispered, "I like _this_ world."

However, as he raised his claws over Riley's head, a sudden force smashed into him, sending Sawbones flying off the rubble he was standing on and causing him to tumble down a hill of debris. He landed on the bottom of the debris, near the edge of the building.

Riley's eyes widened, and she looked up to see Bill and Jill, both of them breaking heavily. "Don't you. . . touch our daughter. . . ever again," Bill whispered down at Sawbones as he lay on the debris.

Bill and Jill turned back to Riley and they scooped her into the air. "Are you hurt?" Jill whispered, running her hand through Riley's hair.

"I'm fine," Riley reassured her parents. Turning around, she saw Blackjacket, the Boss and Pale Girl, limping over the rubble.

"Can we go home, now?" Blackjacket asked, a pleading look on his face as he held his injured arm. "Fighting zombies is way more fun in video-games." Riley gave a weak smile in return.

They had almost forgotten about Sawbones. As the old zombie lay near by the edge of the building, she caught sight of the Boss' gun, lying in the rubble. Quickly, he crawled towards the gun, pulled it out of the rubble, and rose off the ground, the firearm in his grasp.

As Riley wrapped her arms around her parents, out of the corner of her eye, she saw the gun in Sawbones' hand. Her eyes widened when she saw him raise the gun and aim it at her parents.

"Look out!" She shouted, shoving her parents to the ground just as Sawbones released a hail of bullets in their direction. Immediately, all the Others and Freaks in the demolished building turned and fled from the line of fire. Riley and her parents scrambled over the rubble and debris as Sawbones fired at them wildly.

Eventually, they managed to dive behind a massive wall that had managed to stay upright. They pressed themselves against the wall, the bullets bouncing off their cover.

Riley's head darted around to look for something to use. Her eyes landed on Blackjacket's guitar, sticking out of the rubble. Quickly, she tore out from behind the wall and stumbled over the rubble to get to it.

"Riley!" Bill called out to her. Sawbones saw her leave her hiding spot and turned the gun on her, but Riley dodged under the bullets. She stumbled onto the ground, covering her head.

Riley lifted her head up, and saw Ghoul grab a chunk of debris. Quickly, she hurled the chunk of debris at Sawbones, but it barely missed. The older zombie briefly stumbled, then turned the gun on Ghoul and the rest of the group standing near her. They all ducked as the bullets went flying in their direction.

Riley took the opportunity to grab the guitar and pry it from the ground. She rested the end of the guitar against a small piece of debris, the size of a hockey puck.

 _Think of it like hockey,_ She thought to herself. Focusing her eyes, she swung the guitar, striking the piece of debris. It flew through the air soundlessly, and Riley saw it connect with Sawbones' gun. The older zombie spun around as the gun was torn from his grasp and went soaring off the side of the building.

As Sawbones saw his weapon fall towards the street, he heard a shout. Turning around, his dead eyes widened to see Riley, in the air as she soared towards him.

"Riley!" Bill and Jill both shouted.

Riley collided with Sawbones, and the force sent them both flying off the edge of the building. Riley turned around suddenly, and her hand latched onto the edge of the destroyed wall. She hung on for dear life.

She shouted out as she felt Sawbones grab onto her foot, the extra weight dragging her down. She groaned, struggling to keep her hold on the leverage. She looked down at Sawbones, and could see genuine fear in his eyes, for the first time ever.

His grasp slipped on her foot. "Yellow. . . jacket," He wheezed, scrambling to keep hold on something to keep from falling.

Riley stared down at him, pity in her eyes. However, she then turned to look at her friends on the rubble, all of them staring at her, panic in their eyes. She saw Ghoul and Noose in the group.

Her _true_ friends.

Riley turned back to stare at Sawbones, her face grave.

"My name is Riley."

With that, her other leg shot out and connected with Sawbones' face, causing his head to snap back. Instantly, his hold on her feet loosened, and he plummeted down towards the street. His howls of rage tore through the air as his figure got smaller and smaller.

Riley turned away just before she saw him land. However, she heard the impact.

Struggling, Riley continued to try and pull herself up from the building. However, she felt the leverage she was holding onto begin to crack. He eyes widened, and a scream escaped her throat as the chunk of the wall she was holding onto broke.

Just before she fell, however, a hand grabbed her wrist. "I got you," Ghoul said, holding onto Riley as the young girl hung over the street. Immediately, Noose, followed by Riley's parents and the rest of the group rushed forward, and they grabbed onto Riley and pulled her up from the side of the building.

The moment she was on the rubble, Riley embraced everyone around you. "Thank heavens," She whispered, pressing her face against her mother's bosom.

"Thank heavens you're safe," Jill whispered, and she kissed Riley's forehead.

It was then that Riley felt a drop of rain drop onto her hair. Looking up, she saw the clouds cover the sky, and rain began to fall onto the buildings, the streets, and onto them.

And on the streets, the massive fire that had started was extinguished in minutes.

* * *

A half hour later, all of the ferals had been contained or killed. The Others and the Freaks had won.

The hundreds of thousands of people that had gathered in the area all took refuge in the buildings that hadn't been damaged by the fire. The main group had returned to the main hideout.

The Boss saw Joe being rolled out on a stretcher, and rushed towards him. "Joe!" He cried out in horror, his half-dead eyes filled with horror. "What did those ferals do to you?"

Joe's bleeding had stopped, but his skin had turned pale and blue veins were beginning to show. "I can't feel my. . . anything," He whispered, his voice deepening into a growl.

The Boss sniffed. "Don't worry," He said, putting a hand on Joe's head. "We're going to help you. Trust me; being a zombie isn't all that bad if you can get your memories back early."

Riley, meanwhile, located Margaret in the crowd. "Meg!" She shouted, rushing up and hugging her zombie friend, who awkwardly returned the hug.

"So, uh, we won," Margaret said with a shrug. "That's good."

"You have no idea," Riley said, pressing her head against Margaret's. She released her friend, who ran off to join her mother. Riley then turned to her parents, who were kissing each other.

"Ew," She said, and walked up to them. "So, mum," She said. "Dad?"

Bill and Jill turned to stare at her. Riley saw an unfamiliar look in their eyes. "Hey, Riley?" Bill said. "Uh, me and Jill are so happy that we've made it out with out lives that we were going to celebrate a bit." The two inched towards a room.

Riley was about to follow them, but Bill stopped her and said, "Alone." He and Jill covered their mouths to hide their grin, and they promptly vanished into the room, leaving Riley out in the hallways, confused.

"I wonder what they're up to?" Blackjacket said, walking up to Riley and scratching his head in confusion.

"Eh, it's probably not important," Riley said with a shrug. She then turned to see Pale Girl sitting against the wall, a confused look on her face. She was hugging her knees and looking more vulnerable than Riley had ever seen her.

Turning to Blackjacket, Riley said, "Can you excuse me." She then rushed over to Pale Girl and took a seat next to her.

"So, what's up?" Riley asked. She had never seen Pale Girl with this expression before.

"Arabella," Pale Girl whispered.

"What?" Riley asked.

"My name was Arabella," Pale Girl said, turning to Riley. "I remember. My parents died in a fire two years ago, and I survived. I was alone for so long, and somehow, somewhere, I forgot who I was."

Riley's eyes widened a bit. "Oh," She whispered.

"What do I do, Riley?" Pale Girl, or Arabella as she had recently discovered, asked, burying her face into her claws. "My parents are gone. I'm alone." Riley was surprised to hear Arabella sobbing slightly.

"Hey, it's alright," Riley said, resting a hand on Arabella's back. "You're not alone."

Arabella turned to look at her. "What do you mean?" She asked. "All I've done is hurt people, but I was so scared. . . and angry. I wanted to get revenge on the people I thought hurt me."

"I think you were so obsessed with hurting the Boss that you nearly forgot who you are. But that's not important anymore. What's important is rebuilding this city."

Arabella stared at her, silent.

"Then maybe you can find a family that loves you," Riley whispered to her. Arabella took a breath breath, and sighed, her eyes filled with sadness. She took one last look at Riley, and then rested her head on Riley's shoulder, her eyes closed.

Riley let out a weak smile.

* * *

 _Alright, this story is almost done. I'd just like to say that this has been a great story, and a thank you to everyone who stuck with me to the end._

 _Read and review._


	71. Epilogue

_Korrasami 88: Arabella means beautiful and graceful. Rather ironic name, isn't it._

 _Al Drin Hoshizora: Next time, why don't you review the story instead of just commenting on my review response?_

 _Alexisnwallen: Oh, well your welcome, then._

 _MrScourch: Well what did you want me to do, give every character there a "I did not come this far to die now," sequence? Also, considering this is (technically) the last chapter, you better hurry up on questions, then._

 _Antha1: He's not climbing back up because he's dead._

 _I am a burglar: Fine._

 _Js: Thank you._

 _Also, technically the end of the story. I just want to say thank you once more to everyone who read this story all the way to the end. I definitely consider this one of my best stories ever written._

* * *

 ** _One month later_**

* * *

Bill stood at the top of a bridge overlooking the city. At his side were Sir, Bob, and the Boss. The sun was beginning to rise above San Francisco.

In the month that had passed, the city was in a much better state than it had been in nearly a year. It was taking time, but the Others were curing themselves. They were driving, drinking, doing normal things.

And they'd heard that outside of San Francisco, similar things were happening as well.

"So, how long do you think it'll be?" The Boss asked, leaning on the ridge of the bridge. "Before _everyone_ is actually cured."

"Who knows?" Sir asked, scratching his neck. His skin was still somewhat pale, but other than that, he was just like he used to be. "I'd give it a year at most. Soon, this whole 'apocalypse' thing will be behind us all."

Bill shrugged, and chuckled softly. "To think all of this happened in just a year," He said, letting out a sigh. "It felt as long as my whole life, though."

"It was a crazy year, I'll tell you that," The Boss muttered. "Before this whole apocalypse, I wouldn't of dreamed of ever being the leader of the remnants of society." The Boss' skin wasn't as pale anymore, and his blonde hair was of a more natural color now. He didn't wear sunglasses anymore, and his eyes weren't as lifeless as they once were. His shoulder had been bandaged up, and was still healing.

"You still know your name yet?" Bill asked, turning to stare at the Boss.

The Boss shrugged. "All I know is it started with an A," He said. "I'll probably have it back by the end of next month."

The Boss then turned around and started heading back to his car. Bill stopped him, saying, "Where are you going, now?"

The Boss paused. "I'm. . . going home," He said. "I haven't been there in a _long_ time." Without saying a word, he vanished into the car. After starting it up, the car drove down the street and into the city.

Bill smirked, and turned to Sir and Bob. "So, what's it like being zom. . . Others?" He asked.

"It was boring," Bob said with a shrug. "How your daughter managed to spend a year in that form is beyond me. Beats working and paying taxes, I guess."

Bill smiled. "In that case, I think you would've preferred being an Other," He said.

Bob narrowed his eyes. "What are you talking 'bout?" He asked.

"The world's returning to normal," Bill pointed out. "That means in no time, you're going to have to get a job and pay taxes again." He felt a sort of gratification when Sir and Bob's faces paled. They just stood there, not saying a word.

"See you guys later," He said, and turned before hopping into his car and driving off, leaving the two on the bridge.

 _ **(In Bill's Mind)**_

"Are we _seriously_ going to have to get a job and all that stuff?" Fear asked. "I mean, having a year off kind of felt less stressful." He noticed the other emotions all staring at him, and he quickly added, "Minus the zombies, of course."

"I say it was all worth it," Anger said, standing up on his chair. "It took time, energy, and a lot of bodies, but what matters now is that our Riley is back. Now that's a job well done."

"Well said, sir," Joy said, and all the emotions nodded.

* * *

Jill was watching TV when she heard a knock on the door. Walking up to answer it, she opened the door to find Ghoul at the door.

"Hey Jill," Ghoul said with a smile. She was no longer wearing any makeup, and was dressed in more casual clothing, her gothic attire almost nonexistent. "You doing anything this afternoon? I was thinking we could go out. Get a few drinks and stuff."

"No problem," Jill said, smiling warmly. "Glad you and Noose moved into the neighborhood."

"Well, my apartment was a pretty rundown place, anyways," Ghoul replied, shrugging your shoulders.

"Trust me, you'll love it here," Jill reassured the younger woman.

"Oh thank you, Mrs. Andersen," Ghoul said, twirling her hair idly. "I just want to say thank you for for everything. It means a lot to me, really. In fact, I-"

 _ **(In Jill's Mind)**_

"She's mumbling again," Disgust pointed out, leaning in her chair.

"Should we smack her?" Anger asked. Sadness shushed her.

"Oh come on, look at her," Joy said, a smile on her face. "She's adorable. The way she twirls her hair like that."

Pulling a lever, she had Jill raise a finger, shushing Ghoul. The younger woman smiled nervously, and said, "Sorry. I remember being a bit of a mumbler back before the whole apocalypse thing happened."

"Oh, that's fine," Jill said, putting a hand on Ghoul's shoulder. "That just means you're becoming human again."

Ghoul smiled warmly. "Where's your daughter?" She asked, staring past Jill and into the room.

"She's next door, with her friends," Jill answered.

* * *

"Jordan, where'd you go?" Mary asked as she, George, Shelley and Rob walked down the stairs into the basement of their new home. Since the apocalypse had mostly passed, the four had figured living in the woods isolated from the city was superfluous. Thus, they'd taken all their belongings and moved into the Andersen's neighborhood. They weren't the only ones.

When they arrived in the basement, they saw Riley and Jordan on the couch, playing _Left 4 Dead 2._

"Hey, I thought I told you guys to tell me whenever you were playing that game!" Rob pointed out, throwing his large arms into the air in frustration.

"Sorry," Riley said, her eyes glued to the screen. "But I was distracted by the fact that me and Jordan were about to beat your high score!"

"What?!" Rob shouted in shock, his voice causing the house to shake. "No way were you guys about to beat MY high score!" He turned to look at the screen.

There was a pause, and then Rob simply said, "Oh." Next to him, his three friends smirked.

The door nearby opened, and Arabella walked in, gnawing on a chicken leg. "Hey, where'd you get that?" Mary asked.

"Don't ask," Arabella said as she slung the chicken leg into the garbage can.

Not long after, the door upstairs opened, and the group were joined by Jill, Bill, Ghoul and Noose. The four adults all walked into the basement, and Riley's parents took a seat on the couch next to Riley and Jordan.

"So, Margaret's mom says she and her daughter are coming over tonight," Jill said. Riley nodded.

"What're playing?" Bill asked, staring at the screen.

"A zombie game," Riley answered nonchalantly. "We're playing as the zombies."

"Oh," Bill said. A silence followed, and then he asked, "Can I play?"

"Sure," Riley said with a smile. Turning to Jill, she asked, "How about you, grandma?"

"Grandma?" Jill asked, a playful smile on her face. "Well, I bet this grandma can still whoop your butt!" Grabbing one of the spare remotes, she squeezed in next to Riley and Jordan. Arabella leaned on the couch behind Riley, while Ghoul, Noose, and the other four all sat down on the floor.

Riley laughed, leaning her head in on Jill's shoulder. She wrapped her arm around Bill, squeezing him tight. "I love you, mum and dad," She whispered.

"We love you too, monkey," Bill replied, kissing his daughter's cheek.

 _ **(In Riley's Mind)**_

The five emotions stood at the console, all of them smiling. Joy noticed a yellow memory orb roll down the tray. Unlike the other memories, this one rolled into the Core Memory circular tray.

"And this marks the first month since we've been back to normal," Fear pointed out proudly. "If we keep it up like this, maybe we can go a whole year normal."

"I don't think I've ever been happier," Joy said, glowing brightly. After a pause, she said, "Come're, you guys!" She then wrapped her arms around the group, saying, "Group hug!"

"I'm just happy we're all back," Disgust said once Joy released them.

"It's not just that," Joy said. "I'm happy that we're all a family now. And not just our parents. Ghoul, Noose, Mary. . . we're all a family now." All the emotions smiled and nodded.

And from that moment on, they were all a family. From now on and forever.

The apocalypse was over, but that just meant a new adventure had begun. And they were prepared to take it on as a family.

* * *

 **The End**

* * *

 _Phew. It was hard trying to find a way to properly end this story. Just to let everyone know, there will be one more chapter after this; not an official chapter, though._

 _Just want to say a final thank you to everyone. I'm still really proud of this story, which is my longest and most reviewed story I've made to date. Will definitely keep writing._

 _:)_


	72. The Zombie Song

_Only responding to two reviews here._

 _MrScourch: For your first question, to be fare, pretty much all the Others are becoming "functional" members of society, Arabella included. Even Riley had to move past her "feral" stage, even if it wasn't as extreme. As for the ferals, they were killed off. Didn't know that wasn't made clear enough._

 _Antha1:...Did you call the Boss an asshole? That's the only joke I can see._

 _Anyways, the following song is called_ _ **The Zombie Song**_ _, by Stephanie Mabe. Enjoy._

* * *

 **Directed by: Lord Candycane**

 **Produced by: Lord Candycane**

 **Written by: Lord Candycane**

* * *

 _Our love story could be kinda gory, f_ _ar from boring_

 _We'd meet at a post-_ _apocalypse._

 _Yeah I'd be slowly walking in a group stalking you_

 _You'd be the only man alive, t_ _hat I could not resist_

 _Then all of your friends, t_ _hey'd try to kill us b_ _ut only because they'd be jealous_

 _That our love is deeper than Edward and Bella's_

 _Oh_

 _If I were a zombie,_ _I'd never eat your brain_

 _I'd just want your heart, yeah I'd want your heart_

 _I'd just want your heart_

 _Yeah, oh_

 _If I were a zombie, I'd never eat your brain_

 _I'd just want your heart, yeah I'd want your heart_

 _I'd just want your heart_

 _'cause I want ya._

 _You'd be hiding in a second floor apartment knocking all the stares down to save your life_

 _From the undead._

 _Double-barrel shotgun taking out the slow ones_

 _Then you'd see the passion burning in my eye and I'd keep my friend_

 _Then all of your friends, they'd try to kill us but only because they'd be jealous_

 _That our love is deeper than Edward and Bella's_

 _Oh_

 _If I were a zombie, I'd never eat your brain_

 _I'd just want your heart, yeah I'd want your heart_

 _I'd just want your heart_

 _Yeah, oh_

 _If I were a zombie, I'd never eat your brain_

 _I'd just want your heart, yeah I'd want your heart_

 _I'd just want your heart_

 _'cause I want ya._

 _And I'd try not to bite and infect you because I'd respect you too much_

 _Yeah, that's why I'd wait until we got married_

 _Oh_

 _And our happiest days would be spent picking off all your friends_

 _And they'd see a love this deep won't stay buried_

 _If I were a zombie, I'd never eat your brain_

 _I'd just want your heart, y_ _eah I'd want your heart_

 _I'd just want your heart_

 _yeah, oh_

 _If I were a zombie, I'd never eat your brain_

 _I'd just want your heart, yeah I'd want your heart_

 _I'd just want your heart_

 _'cause I'd want ya._

 **Cast**

 **Kaitlyn Dias as Yellowjacket/Riley Andersen**

 **Freaks**

 **Kyle MacLachlan as Bill Andersen**

 **Diane Lane as Jill Andersen**

 **Bobby Moynihan as Joe**

 **Dave Goelz as Sir**

 **Frank Oz as Bob**

 **Gregg Berger as Larry Z. Roe**

 **Paula Pell as Margaret's mother**

 **Others**

 **Ben Cox as Blackjacket/Jordan**

 **Katie Lowes as Ghoul**

 **Robb Corddry as Noose**

 **John Ratzenberger as Sawbones**

 **Selena Gomez as Mary**

 **Kodi Smit-McPhee as George**

 **Mindy Kaling as Shelley**

 **Christopher Mintz-Plasse as Rob**

 **Jason Bateman as the Boss**

 **Sunny May Allison as Arabella the Pale Girl**

 **Paris Van Dyke as Margaret**

* * *

 _Hoped you like this story, folks! And just as a heads up, there are plans for a follow-up. Not a full-on sequel story, but a relatively short story of one-shots._


End file.
